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India's population to double in 50 years, to overtake China's in 2050
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Wednesday, 14 July, 2010, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Our Bureau, Mumbai
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India's burgeoning population has seen a five-fold increase over the last 100 years and will surpass that of China by 2050. If India continues at the current pace of growth, India's population will double in the next 50 years, making sustainable development unattainable. Interestingly, one in every four persons in the world will be an Indian by then.
The report by the Janasankhya Sthirta Kosh, under the ministry of health and family welfare, and released on July 11, the World Population Day, shows that while India's population grew by 1.4% over the last five years, China saw only a 0.6 % population growth for the corresponding period, thanks to the one-child norm made compulsory by the Chinese government.
India's total population in 2009 was 119.8 crore, China's 134.5 crore and Pakistan's 18 crore. While India's population will increase to 161.38 crore by 2050, that of China will only reach 141.7 crore. Interestingly, Pakistan's population grew at the highest rate in the sub-continent at 2.2 % over the last five years.
India will have to share an additional burden of 371 million by 2026. Out of this, Uttar Pradesh will have a share of 22% of the population, Bihar 8%, Uttarakhand 1%, the four southern states 13% and Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan 7% each.
Another interesting fact is that the individual population of Indian states equal the total population of many countries. For example, Uttar Pradesh, with a population of 18.3 crore, nearly touches that of Brazil at 18.7 crore, Maharashtra's 10.4 crore is equal to that of Mexico's 10.4 crore and Bihar's 9 crore is more than Germany's 8.3 crore.
At present India's population of 119 billion is nearly that of the entire Africa and South America.
Talking about aspects of family planning which have been initiated over the years, the report says the rate of sterilization was the highest in Chhattisgarh at 74 % followed by Rajasthan 73 %, Jharkhand 68%, Madhya Pradesh 58% and Uttar Pradesh 43%.
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