India’s population: 1,274,239,769 and growing
At the current growth rate of 1.6% a year, India can become the world's most populous country by 2050
New Delhi: The Indian population is growing at a rate of 1.6% a year, and could make the country the most populous in the world by 2050. At 5pm on Saturday, the World Population Day, India recorded a population of 1,274,239,769, which is 17.25% of the global population, as per the Jansankhya Sthirata Kosh, or National Population Stabilisation Fund (NPSF), an autonomous body under the Union health ministry.
Noting that India’s population was growing at a faster rate than China, which currently is the world’s most populous country at around 1.39 billion, an NPSF official said that the country could become the most populated one by 2050.
“If current growth rates continue, India will have 1.63 billion people by 2050 and will surpass China," the official said.
At an event here on Saturday, health minister J.P. Nadda stressed on the involvement of development partners and NGOs in assisting government to achieve population stabilization goals.
According to data from NPSF, the total fertility rate (TFR) in India has seen a decline and stood at 2.3 in 2013 although the decline is not consistent.
“Age at marriage has a significant influence on TFR, particularly in countries where childbearing occurs within marriage. A country where age at marriage is high, fertility is generally observed to be low because of the reduced number of women at risk of childbearing," the official said.
The data suggests that a high percentage of women (21-26%) are married below 18 years of age in states such as Rajasthan, Jharkhand and Bihar.
The population of India, at 1.21 billion as per the 2011 Census, is almost equal to the combined population of the US, Indonesia, Brazil, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Japan. PTI
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