What the article is about:
- The article talks about UN population division’s (UNDP) projection about India’s population in 2023, and what should be the focus of policymakers to harness the demographic dividend.
Relevance:
- GS1: Human geography, poverty and developmental issues.
Analysis:
- World population prospects report 2022 of UNDP projects that India will replace china as world’s most populous nation in 2023.
Why the alarmist view is outdated:
- A variety of metrics like fertility and replacement rates, sex ratio, migration trends- enable a far more nuanced understanding of demographic dynamics today compared to the 1950s.
- According to the latest National Family Health Survey data Total fertility rate of India is 2, which is below the replacement rate recommended by UNDP i.e. 2.1
- India has achieved TFR of 2 by persuasion and education in contrast to china, who has used infamous one child policy to stabilise the population growth.
What’s needed to be done to deal with challenges of population growth:
- States like uttar pradesh, bihar, and madhya pradesh needs to be included, whose TFR is higher than the national average.
- Policymakers needs to focus on areas of fundamental to well being- education, nutrition, healthcare, housing and employment.
- The youth will have to be equipped with skills that are indispensable to the knowledge economy (an economy in which growth is dependent on the quantity, quality, and accessibility of the information available, rather than the means of production)
Conclusion:
- In coming days policymakers needs to focus on aspects that are necessary for allround human growth, an informed debate is needed and it requires that diverse voices are heard.
