Population and Associated Issues Mains Test
Mains Test Series
Population and Associated Issues
Q. Critically Examine whether the Growing Population is the cause of Poverty in India or whether Poverty is the cause of Growing Population in India. (150 Words)
Introduction:
According to the World Bank, Poverty is a pronounced deprivation in well-being and comprises many dimensions. It includes low incomes and the inability to acquire the essential goods and services necessary for survival with dignity.
In India, 29.5% of the population lived below the poverty line in 2014, as per the Rangarajan Committee report. According to the United Nations Population Fund’s released State of the World Population Report 2023, India will be the world’s most populous country by the middle of 2023.
- Growing Population as a Cause of Poverty:
- Pressure on limited Resources: As the population increase, the demand for essential resource such as food, water, etc., also increases, which can further lead to scarcity and higher prices, affecting the poor most.
- Unemployment: Rapid Population growth can outpace job creation, leading to higher unemployment rates. Making it difficult for individuals to escape from the vicious cycle of Poverty.
- Pressure on infrastructure and Services: An increasing population can strain healthcare, Education, and public services. Insufficient infrastructure and facilities can hinder access to quality education and healthcare, perpetuating a cycle of Poverty.
- Environmental Degradation: A large population can lead to increased resource consumption          and    waste         generation, contributing            to environmental degradation. This can negatively impact agriculture productivity and livelihood, particularly for vulnerable communities.
- Income Inequality: Poor families generally have higher fertility rates. Thus, more people are born into poverty, making it harder for disadvantaged individuals to escape Poverty.
- Slum and urbanization: A growing population often leads to rapid urbanization. Inadequate urban planning results in the proliferation of slums & informal settlements, where living conditions are poor and opportunities for social mobility are limited.
- Poverty as a cause of population Growth:
- Lower employability of women: Less access to Education and means of livelihood leaves women with more time to raise a family.
- Access to contraceptive techniques: lower access to healthcare and family planning methods such as contraceptive surgeries, pills and condoms.
- Early age of Marriage: If education ends early, there is little effort in building a career in poor households. This often leads to early marriage and even child marriage, a significant cause of higher population growth.
- Economic reason: Children are often also considered an asset to the family who can support them economically.
- Reproductive rights: Women in poor households are often not empowered enough to refuse early pregnancy.
- Higher child and infant mortality forces families psychologically to raise more kids to advance their lineage.Â
Way forward:Â
- Family planning and awareness: Providing more and more facilities for contraceptives and awareness about family planning.
- Gender Neutral contraceptive: The government should promote genderneutral contraceptive measures, i.e., equal emphasis on tubectomy and vasectomy.
- Women empowerment: ensures delayed age of marriage, right to access contraceptives and less time to raise large families.
- Skill Development: Skill India, Pradhan Mantri Vikas Kaushal Yojna, etc., would lead to better employability and thus less time to raise a large family.
- Better access to health and Education through schemes such as Ayushman Bharat, Janani Suraksha Yojana and ICDS.
- Resolving Poverty: Schemes such as PM Awas Yojna for providing shelter, PM Kisan, Jan Dhan Yojana for Financial inclusion, and digital literacy are essential to reduce Poverty.
Conclusion:
Thus, in order to attain an inclusive, egalitarian and sustainable society, the population growth agenda should be given its due importance. This can be possible with government effort and the full participation of people from all sections of society.
Poverty and population growth are two sides of the same coin and must be addressed in a coordinated manner to reduce their ill effects on society.
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