11 Indian states, three UTs achieve ‘two children per couple’ target

11 Indian states, three UTs achieve ‘two children per couple’ target

Although India has a long way to go in arresting population growth, 11 states and three union territories have shown the way by attaining the ideal of two children per couple. However, states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh will need at least 15-20 years to achieve this goal

Eleven states and three union territories in India have beaten the 2010 deadline set by the central government of achieving a total fertility rate (TFR) of ‘two children per couple’, under the National Population Policy framed in 2000.

According to a recently-released health ministry report, the 11 states are Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Punjab, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal. The union territories are Chandigarh, Pondicherry and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

“Spacing between children, age of marriage, behavioural changes, education, better healthcare and socio-economic conditions are some of the factors behind this progress,” says Amarjeet Sinha, joint secretary in the union health ministry. Other officials add that there appears to have been widespread acceptance of family planning measures like vasectomy and tubectomy.

The health ministry report however regrets the fact that populous states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh will probably take another 15-20 years to achieve the TFR target. It says that, by 2050, India’s anticipated population will reach more than 1.5 billion, and over 1.853 billion at the close of the 21st century.

National Commission on Population estimates project that by 2026, 22% of India’s population will be contributed by Uttar Pradesh alone, while Bihar, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh together will account for 22%. The four southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu will account for only 13%.

National Family Health Survey 3, that provides information on population, health and nutrition in India and each of its 29 states, based on field work conducted between December 2005 and August 2006, showed that 70% of women were married by the age of 18 in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and Rajasthan. In comparison, less than 20% of women in Kerala had early marriages.

Districts in Bihar like Sapaul, Katihar and Darbhanga had 98% teenage mothers, followed by Kamrup in Assam, with 56%, and Hingoli in Maharashtra with 35%. In comparison, Thoothukudi in Tamil Nadu and Hamirpur and Kangra in Himachal Pradesh had only 1% teenage mothers.

In districts across the country, the incidence of early marriage among women was as high as 83% and 73% respectively in Sharaswati, in Uttar Pradesh, and Jamui in Bihar. In comparison, Chamoli in Uttarakhand and Alapuzza and Pathanamihitta in Kerala reported no underage marriages.

Nationally, the survey showed that 51% of the population falls within the reproductive age-group, which means 18.8 crore couples require contraceptive coverage. However, only 53% practise birth control. It further revealed that 42% of the population increase constitutes births beyond two children per couple, and though fertility in the 15-19 age-group is declining, about 35 lakh teenagers have children each year in the country.

According to National Commission on Population estimates, India is expected to overtake China in human numbers by 2030. India is expected to become the first and the only country on the planet to have a population of over 2 billion; China’s population is likely to drop after reaching a peak of around 1.46 billion in 2050.