The Population Problem in India
India faces a number of problems. The most pressing problem before our country at present is the problem of population. India’s population is growing by leaps and bounds. China is first in population in the world. Next comes India. At the time of Independence our population was thirty crores. Now it is more than 100 crores. Every year we have a new Australia added to our population. If this problem is not solved, India cannot be a happy, healthy and a prosperous nation.
The effects of overpopulation are felt everywhere. The trains are overcrowded. The land in villages is divided and further divided. The number of unemployed persons is increasing. Forests are disappearing. The housing problem is growing serious day by day.
There are many causes behind this problem. India is a hot country. So naturally we have a high birth rate. Due to better medical facilities death rate has fallen. Our social customs are also responsible for making this problem serious. A childless person or an unmarried man is not respected anywhere. In villages marriages are arranged at an early age and a widower with children marriage again. Due to advancement of medical science the expectation of life at birth has risen for the last 50 years. Another cause of over-population is general prosperity which has nearly banished under-feeding as a cause of ill health.
There is an urgent need to check the population growth. For this, family planning is the only remedy. ‘Family Planning or Welfare’ means keeping under control the number of children in the family. Planned family is the need of the hour. We should keep this point in mind that the less the number of children, the better they will be looked after and better and happier will their life be.
The government of India is very serious to check the ever-increasing population of the country. In our Five-Year plans, the government of India allotted crores of rupees for this purpose. Family planning centers have been started all over the country. Birth control appliances are distributed free among the people. Government servant is not allowed to have two wives at a time. He is expected to have two or three children only. The abortion in some cases has been made legal. The marriage age of boys and girls has been increased.
The population explosion is a threat to our national development. All efforts must be made to limit the size of the families. For the success of the family planning program, the co-operation of the people is very necessary.
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