Population policy of India

Population Policy in India

"To deny people their human rights is to challenge their humanity"

Nelson Mandela

What is Population Policy?

• It is a purposeful measure aimed at affecting demographic processes such as fertility, mortality and migration.

Types of Population Policy -

1. Ante-Natal Population Policy 
2. Distributional Population Policy

Ante-Natal Population Policy - It aimed to reduce 'Birth Rate' thereby stablising the overall population.

Distributional Population Policy - It aimed at ensuring balanced distribution of population so as to check their over concentration at any particular location. 

(Usually the concept of Counter Magnet is used in distributional population policy).

Evolution of Population Policy in India

Pre-independence period -

• It is characterised as the period of indifferent as the Britishers were not keen to take any interest to control population/enact any policy related to population.
• Different committees were established by Indians in this regard such as R.K. Mukherjee Committee, Bhore Committee, etc.

Post-independence period -

1. From 1947 to 1951
• It is characterised as the period of neutrality as during this period India is busy in consolidating its unity and integrity.
2. From 1951 to 1961
• This period is characterised by period of experimentation.
• 1952 - National family planning program was introduced to control the growing population.
• Clinical Approach were promoted.
• Clinical Approach - According to this, Services would be provided to those couple who are motivated to visit family planning centres set up by the government.
3. From 1961 to 1971
• It is characterised as the testing period (decadal population growth - 21.5%).
• Extension Approach, Cafeteria Approach and Selected Approach of Family Planning were promoted.
• Extension Approach - Adequate educational awareness would be created with respect to all family planning and benefits of a small family.
• Cafeteria Approach - Family planning methods would be made available to all like Contraceptives. The government would made available various options for family planning but the choice was given to the people to opt for any of them.
• Selected Approach - It targeted the people of age group of 25 years to 35 years to create awareness about family planning. This approach also included the use of Cohesion with respect to family planning.
4. 1971 Census
• Inspite of all these approach, the decadal growth does not decline.
• Decadal growth - 24.6%
5. 1978
• First National Population Policy was passed.
6. 2000
• Second National Population Policy was passed.

National Population Policy of 1978 

• It rename the family planning program to family welfare program (because of forceful sterilisation).
• Implementation of child marriage restraint act (minimum age of marriage was made 18 years and 21 years for girl and boy respectively).
• It made the sterilisation voluntary.
• Monetary incentives were given for sterilisation.
• It includes population education as a part of study curriculum.
• Made emphasis on the use of media for spreading awareness.
• Thrust towards research and development in reproductive biology and contraception.

National Population Policy of 2000 

• Introduced with the objective of social and economical development.
• It aimed to improve the quality of life, to provide them with the opportunity and choice to become the productive asset in the society.
• It includes three fold objectives -
1. To address the unmet needs for contraception, health care infrastructure, health workforce and provide integrated service delivery for basic rights.
2. To bring Total Fertility Rate to replacement level by 2010.
3. To achieve stable population by 2045.

Perspective of M.S. Swaminathan wrt Population Policy 

• Monetary incentives for sterilisation should not be given as it creates scope of corruption and misutilisation/misappropriation of funds. Instead, awareness generation is the need of the hour.
• Democratic and decentralised approach is required to control the population.
• Entire onus of the family planning should not be on the women, given the nature of patriarchy as well as risk involved with female sterilisation.

Need for a new Population Policy 

• Notion of wrong perception.

Wrong perception → Population growth is associated with various issues of country like - It degenerates religious and class conflicts; It led to polarisation of the society with pits, weaks and down trodden against the privileges elite classes.

Also, population growth is usually seen as increase in liability for the state. So, every time viewing population growth from only one lens, i.e., it is a liability is a wrong notion and this needs to be corrected.

• Lack of Success on various parameters like Infant Mortality Rate (IMR), Maternity Mortality Rate (MMR), etc.
• Skewed female and child sex ratio 
• (Discriminatory social barriers like absence of ownership rights over land and property are responsible for son meta preference).
• Migration 
• (It can lead to issue of son of soil as well as strain on infrastructure, housing, water availability, etc).
• Ageing
• The growing population of elderly population, increase in life expectancy accompanied with chronic disease might result in burden on family and state resources.
• It might lead to deflection of resources from task of providing education, skill development, employment, etc.
• Disintegration of joint family and increase in Old age houses creates burden on state resources.
• It led to increase in dependency ration.
• Also there were many issues faced by old age in availing the benefits of old age homes and protective laws.
• Market of caregivers are unregulated, undependable and expensive.

Therefore, government must provide opportunity also for old age people to be productive in their later age.

For example - SACRED Scheme for old age Click here to know about Sacred Scheme 

Way forward 

1. A new Population Policy which would address the above mentioned issues.
2. Greater focus on young population (below 35 years of age) by providing better education, health, skill development, employment opportunity, etc.
3. Piecemeal Engineering Approach (Target Specific Approach) should be adopted, i.e., studying the regional demography and accordingly made and implement policies.
4. Focus on smaller states
• For example - Sample registration survey data should be generated for small states and UTs for better understanding of their demography.
5. Convergence Approach (i.e., both horizontal and vertical approach) should be adopted.

Two child norm for Population Control 

Rationale behind this provision -

1. It helps to control fertility rate at a faster pace.
2. It will help in controlling the overall population growth.
3. Denial of socio-economic benefits will force parents to adopt small family.

Issues with respect to two child provision -

1. Population is already on declining trend.
2. It is regressive, violates principle of voluntary choice and human rights.
3. It will further fuel practices such as bigamy, desertification, female feoticide, neglect and death of girl child, abandonment of girl child, sex selective abortion, etc.
4. It is against the right to life.
5. Many candidates were disqualified from the panchayat elections due to this policy, i.e., it led to political exclusion and lack of social mobility.

Question for practice 

Discuss the factors responsible for the failure of the Population Policy in the context of India. Briefly discuss what kind of Population Policy is the need of the hour.

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Note - This is my Vision IAS Notes (Vision IAS Class Notes) and Ashutosh Pandey Sir's Public Administration Class notes. I've also added some of the information on my own. 

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