-The Hindu India’s religious mix has been stable since 1951, says Pew Center study The religious composition of India’s population since Partition has remained largely stable, with both Hindus and Muslims, the two largest religious groups, showing not only a marked decline but also a convergence in fertility rates, according to a new study published by the Pew Research Center, a non-profit based in Washington DC. The study, based on data sourced from...

-Livemint.com Development—healthcare, jobs, education—inevitably lowers the Total Fertility Rate Give me a rupee for every time I have heard “demographic advantage" applied to India in the last several years, and I’d be sitting on a small fortune. Invariably, the mentions are tinged with pride, as if we’ve suddenly transformed into a commendably and overwhelmingly young nation. Truth is, we used to be even younger and are getting steadily older. But that’s a story...

-The Hindu Data from Assam and Uttar Pradesh show that fertility rates have been reducing over time Population policy is suddenly in the news in India with Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled States such as Assam and Uttar Pradesh proposing to bring in or bringing in draft legislation aimed at controlling their populations. The Uttar Pradesh Population (Control, Stabilisation and Welfare) Bill of 2021 promotes a two-child policy, according to which those people having...

-Down to Earth State-led control of population might be criticised, but it will help us in the long run to stabilise the population growth in Uttar Pradesh Population is a hard reality. A state like Uttar Pradesh, which consists of 200 million people, needs to respond to this hard reality. That is why the Uttar Pradesh government led by Adityanath has proposed the UP population control bill 2021 recently. Governance in this drastically...

-Down to Earth The focus must be on safeguarding women and girls’ reproductive health. Smaller families can be achieved by ensuring gender equality, empowering women The law proposed by the Uttar Pradesh Law Commission on July 7, 2021 on two-child policy compels couples to limit their families through a series of incentives and disincentives. There is no evidence, however, that coercive policies can truly reduce fertility. Two-child policies are known to disproportionately impact...