Why India needs to curb its population

India. a country so vast that it inspired the name of the continent's largest region: the Indian subcontinent. With increased size came an increase in population, which continued to grow after effective reforms in the Indian healthcare system following independence. The population continued to grow without any check, and today we are the world’s second-most populous country after China, and if we continue to follow the same trajectory, it's only a matter of time before we become the most populous nation in the world.

India owes its large population size not only to the vast arable lands, round-the-year crop growth, illiteracy, and the mindset that more sons and daughters mean more hands in the fields, but also to the lack of intent from the government. Even after 27 years of independence, there was no population control program, and Indira Gandhi's sterilisation programme was so abrupt that it sent shockwaves across the nation and set a bad precedent for future population control programs.

China has done a better job in this regard, albeit in a way that our democratic nation cannot.The one-child programme and other systemic population control programmes have yielded significant results. This has not only raised the "quality" of life but has also ensured the sustainability of the vital resources.

India needs to tackle this imminent problem in a different manner. Though there are many programmes that have been designed to tackle population growth, not much has been achieved. In a country like ours, where millions of people remain impoverished, a much more honest and concerted effort is required. More population means more pressure on the land to grow food, more water, more houses, etc. We are already misusing precious natural resources; we cannot afford to exacerbate the situation. The human development index score of India is way below that of other nations on the same continent. We may have a large population, but we are not happy. Not every mouth has food; not everyone has clothes; not everyone is receiving a good education. Is this the India we would like to see? a poor, hungry nation? The answer is definitely a big "no." We need to understand that a rising population is not just the problem of our government. It’s our problem too. If we keep being so passive, we cannot change things.

As citizens of this great nation, we need to ensure that every fellow citizen of this nation knows the harmful effects of overpopulation. We need to ensure that this message is carried far and wide. The government needs to come up with concrete solutions instead of "populist" gimmicks. As responsible citizens, we owe it to this country to help it prosper at all costs.

 

 

Swami Vivekananda once said, "Don’t see what the nation has done for you, see what you have done for the nation."