Charting a path for the population committee

Syllabus: GS-I

Subject: Society and Social Justice

Topic: Population and associated issues

Issue: Emography of India

Context: The announcement in the interim Budget of a “high-powered committee to extensively consider the challenges arising from rapid population growth and demographic changes”.

India’s demographic landscape presents both opportunities and challenges for the country’s socio-economic development.

Tasks in front of the Committee:

• addressing issues such as family planning, maternal and child health, education, employment, and socio-economic development.

Past, present and future of India’s demography:

• increase in economic growth because of its demographic advantage comprising of:
  • decreasing Total Fertility Rate (TFR)
  • increasing working age population
  • steady rise of elderly population
  • decrease in the dependency ratio (increase in life expectancy
• Health, education, employment challenges:
  • Public spending on health has remained around 1% of GDP
  • investments in education and skill development are crucial
  • The disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic have amplified these challenges in health, education and skill gaps
• Challenges to policy making in India – Data driven approach:
  • the non-availability of current and reliable data on the population for evidence-based policymaking.
  • regular and comprehensive national censuses and surveys are crucial for collecting demographic data.
  • Independent audits, data validation exercises, and peer review processes can help identify and rectify data errors and inconsistencies.