India has surpassed China to become the most populous country in the world, as per estimates

In a significant development, India may have already surpassed China as the world's most populous country. According to projections from the World Population Review (WPR), India’s population was 141.7 crore as of the end of 2022. That's a little more than 50 lakh more than the 141.2 crore declared by China on January 17, when there was the first fall since the 1960s, according to official announcements.

India, a country where 50 percent of the population is under 30, is anticipated to have the world's fastest-growing major economy. The milestone was supposed to be reached later this year, according to the UN. According to WPR, India's population increased to 142.3 crore people as of January 18. WPR predicts that, though India's population growth has slowed, it will still climb until at least 2050.

The most recent figure for India is 142.8 crore, according to a different estimate from the research platform Macrotrends. After postponing population surveys due to pandemic disruptions in 2021, the nation did not release its once-every-ten-year census statistics.

The largest programme of its kind in the world, free food rations are still used by around 80 crore people in India, despite the country's relatively good recovery from the pandemic and its rapid economic expansion prior to COVID-19.

The third-largest economy in Asia is currently self-sufficient in food production. In terms of rice, wheat, and sugar production, it ranks second. While being the leading importer of edible oils, it is also the largest consumer of sugar. India is the third-largest market for the purchase of crude oil, the second-largest consumer of steel and gold. In addition, it is the third-largest domestic aviation market in the world.

In his January 18 report, Bloomberg Economist Eric Zhu referred to the minor recession that China is currently experiencing as a "growth crushing headwind for a long time”. According to information made public by the National Statistics Bureau, China's population decreased by 8.5 lakh in 2022 compared to the previous year.

(With agency inputs)