Population Policy in India

Abstract

India was the first country in the world to launch the first national programme on family planning in 1952 emphasizing for reduction of birth rates ‘to stabilize the population at a level consistent with the requirement of national economy’. Thereafter, the first statement on National Population Policy was made in 1976 while in 1977, a statement on Family Welfare Programmes was announced. Both the statements were laid on the Table of the House in Parliament, but were never discussed or adopted. The 1976 National Population Policy statement, however, could remain effective for a short period of just about one year only. The new Government that came in the office after the 1977 general elections, discarded major provisions made in the 1976 policy statement. The National Population Policy, 2000 is in that sense first approved population policy of the country so far, which has been comprehensively covered here.