India To Be World's Most Populous Country By 2050

On Thursday, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) released a report which says that by the year 2050, India will be at the number one position as far as population is concerned. At present China is the most populated country in the world, with a figure of 1.35 billion. India is second with a population of 1.2 billion.

China has been successfully running strict family planning programs like "One Family, One Child", and this has provided excellent results for them. So much so, that in the last 5 years, China's population grew at a rate of just 0.6%, while that of India's grew at 1.4%. India has never really got their family planning programs in place, in the sense that there is no penalty for violators, or rewards for those who adhere to the plans. On the other hand, China has been implementing their programs much more strictly, which is why they are seeing better results. Also, the fertility rate in India is 2.44%, and that in China is as low as 1.77%. So all these factors contribute to the overall equation. Hence, by the year 2050, India's population is projected to grow to 1.41 billion, while that of China will be less than that figure.

On the flip side, India's infant mortality deaths have been more than double of China's. If we talk about children below the age of 5, then in India, per 1000 births, 85 males and 95 females die. And if we compare China, the figure is as low as 25 males and 36 females.

India needs to get their act together as far as family planning and healthcare is concerned. China has done well in the past decade, which is why they are progressing at a faster pace as a nation. No doubt, India too has progressed a lot in the past 10 years, but they will have to tackle the population problem sincerely, which will then automatically help in working towards the other issues like poverty and literacy. There is no reason why realistic goals cannot be achieved. After all, the number of billionaires in India has doubled, just in the past 1 year.