Essay on Population

The study of the population is fascinating. There is no denying that a nation's population is a very good indicator of how that nation will function in the future and what its overall capabilities are. The population of a nation is very important to international leaders for the same reason. One of any nation's most important resources is its people and the capabilities it possesses.

When we discuss a nation's population, we cover a wide range of topics. Because we are discussing the future of the country's workforce?the people who will build the country as a place to live and prosper?we can clearly say that we are talking about the future of the entire country. Using India as an example, when we discuss the population of the nation, we are discussing the realisation of the vision that our country's independence fighters had for it. A nation's entire population has the power to drastically alter the range of employment and types of work that are available to them.

Economy and Population

The growth and changes in a nation's economy are directly related to its population. So, the welfare of the people must also be prioritized; the population requires the right kind of food, a healthy environment to grow, and a fantastic and comfortable way of life. Is that something that everyone can do? All of us are aware of the solution. In a country like India where financial disparities are thus vast, there is no potential for any one part of the people to have a beautiful lifestyle from the outset that can help them develop as individuals.

The same holds true for other nations. The fact that income inequality exists in every nation's population is what makes the subject of the population so fascinating. We already know that it is the greatest asset that any nation can own, but each nation must carefully plan and prepare how to care for this population to meet every single requirement. This not only contributes to the overall prosperity of the nation but also raises its prospects for future success.

Demography of India

India has a sixth of the world's population, making it the second most populous nation. There were 1,407,563,842 people in the world as of the 2022 edition of the World Population Prospects.

Between 1975 and 2010, the population increased to 1.2 billion, crossing the billion-person mark in 1998. India is predicted to surpass China as the world's most populous country by 2023. It is anticipated that there will be more than 1.5 billion people living there by 2030, and that figure will increase to 1.7 billion by 2050. It is ranked 112 globally with a population growth rate of 0.98 percent in 2017 as opposed to 2.3 percent between 1972 and 1983. In India, more than half of the population is under 25, and more than 65 percent is under 35.

India's dependency ratio will be a little over 0.4 by 2030, despite having an average age of 28.7 years in 2022, compared to 38.4 for China and 48.6 for Japan. However, since reaching a peak more than ten years ago, the number of children in India has been decreasing. After reaching a peak in 2007, the number of kids under the age of five has been declining ever since. The proportion of children in India under the age of 15 peaked in 2011 and is presently declining. More than 2,000 different ethnic groups, every major religion, four major language families, and two language isolates?the Nihali language, which is spoken in certain parts of Maharashtra, and the Burushaski language, which is spoken in some parts of Jammu and Kashmir?all call India home. Anglo-Indians make up 1,000,000 of the population in India, while 700,000 Americans live there. They account for more than 0.1% of India's overall population. Overall, only the continent of Africa is more diverse in terms of languages, genes, and cultures than the country of India.

In 2016, there were 944 females for every 1000 males, up from 940 in 2011. After a century-long drop, this ratio has been displaying an upward trend for the past twenty years.

The religion with the highest growth in India is Islam. Since independent India's census statistics became accessible, the growth rates of Muslims have regularly outpaced those of Hindus. For instance, the growth rate of Muslims was 29.5% from 1991 to 2001.

History

In 1500, there were roughly 100 million people living in India. By 1800, there were 185 million people living in the Mughal Empire, up from 160 million in 1700. With 15% of its population residing in urban areas, Mughal India had a relatively high level of urbanisation for the time. This figure was higher than that of British India in the 19th century and was higher than the percentage of the population living in urban areas in modern Europe. According to a census conducted in 1881, there were 255 million people living there during the British Raj.

Since 1881, research on India's population has mainly focused on the country's total population, birth and death rates, growth rates, geographic distribution, literacy, and the divide between rural and urban areas.

Biological immunisation was a major factor in the decline in mortality rates between 1920 and 1945. A safer and cleaner environment, improved nutrition, better living conditions, increased earnings, better official health programmes, and enhanced medical care were further influences. According to a 1938 government assessment, severe urban overpopulation led to significant public health issues.

Effects of Population Growth

1. High Birth Rate:

The birth rate is still high (the annual exponential growth rate is 1.64 percent according to the 2011 census), despite numerous initiatives to slow population growth, but the death rate has decreased as a result of the expansion and improvement of medical facilities.

Family planning is not widely practised or sincere, particularly in rural areas. Due to this circumstance, a sizable number of the youth (15-24 years, or 2%), as well as the elderly (32 percent in 2011), are dependent on a comparatively tiny workforce of the general population.

The number of young people in the population places a heavy burden on the social, educational, and medical services that are offered.

2. Unbalanced Gender Composition

According to the 2011 Census, there are 940 females for every 1,000 males in the country. In the majority of nations, women outnumber men. India, however, is distinct from certain South and East Asian nations. These countries have higher female mortality rates.

India now has more men than women, with the exception of two states?Kerala (1,084) and Pondicherry (1083)?where the sex ratio is lower than 1.

There are two key causes for the declining child sex ratio:

(1) A higher newborn mortality rate for females than for males, and

(2) Feminist murder.

Both, in turn, exhibit parental and societal prejudice against girls, which has mostly been identified as an attitude issue. Experts attribute this threat to societal pressure and dowry expectations rather than a lack of knowledge and understanding.

3. Malnutrition and a Low Standard of Living:

A nation's standard of living is also influenced by its population. Food, especially a healthy diet, is seriously lacking in India. Low living standards and frequently subpar housing circumstances contribute to health issues like deficiency disorders. The lack of financial resources, inadequate medical facilities, and public ignorance prevent housing and health conditions from being improved.

4. Unemployment:

The army of young people without jobs who are employable is growing as a result of unwelcome population growth. Such hopeless teenagers burden society with their misery. They might engage in illegal activity and hurt law-abiding citizens. In India, a sizable section of the population relies on agriculture, which is typically carried out using antiquated technology, outdated methods, and insufficient financial resources. As a result, there is little production per area.

Industries and services in the secondary and tertiary sectors, respectively, are less developed. As a result, employment possibilities for semi-skilled and unskilled workers are extremely scarce. A small number of unskilled employees are employed in the agricultural sector.

The career options for educated and skilled individuals are also extremely limited. As a result, employees of all educational levels and skill levels go to urban regions in quest of employment.

The outcome is that towns and cities are now congested, which worsens living circumstances and leads to socioeconomic and environmental issues including crime and delinquency, prostitution, pollution, transportation, and violence, among others.

Population Control Measures in India

i) Legal age of marriage:

In several populous nations like Bangladesh, Pakistan, and India, the issue of child marriage is particularly acute. A young marriage causes a lengthy gestation period for children. Additionally, young age marriage deprives people of the education and awareness needed to be attentive to and recognise the effects of raising an excessive number of children. As of now, there is a legal age of marriage in India for boys and girls, below this age marriage is not allowed legally.

ii) Education's Expansion:

The growth of education alters people's perspectives. The more educated males favour delaying marriage and following small-family customs. Women who have received education are more health concerned and steer clear of repeated pregnancies, which lowers the birth rate.

iii) Adoption

Despite spending a lot of money on medical care, some parents never have children. It is suggested that they adopt children from orphanages. Orphans will benefit from it. Government should also offer adoption incentives.

iv) Additional Job Opportunities

The first and most important step is to expand employment opportunities in both urban and rural communities. Generally speaking, there is covert unemployment in rural areas. Therefore, efforts should be made to move jobless people from the rural to the urban side. They would raise their standard of living and adopt small-family standards as their income increased. Giving women jobs is one more way to control the population. Women should be encouraged to work in a variety of disciplines. Women are actively participating in competitive exams. As a result, they are becoming more prevalent in fields like teaching, medicine, banking, etc.

v) Raise Awareness

The consequences of having too many children need to be explained to people. Governmental and non-governmental organisations can run awareness programmes to tell people that having too many children will prevent them from being able to pay for their health, education, or nutrition needs. The negative effects of population growth must be explained to the general public to broaden their perspective and comprehension. Population growth is a major cause of illiteracy, disease, and malnutrition.