The latest UN data has shown that India’s population is expected to exceed China’s by 3 million by mid-2023.
India’s population will touch 1.4286 billion this year, against China’s 1.4257 billion, according to the UN Population Fund’s (UNFPA) State of World Population Report, 2023.
India’s Population Boom
Respondents in Brazil, Egypt, India, and Nigeria, hold the common opinion that the population in their own country is too large and fertility rates are too high.
The report noted that “contrary to the alarm bells about exploding numbers, population trends everywhere point to slower growth and ageing societies.”
However, it said that by 2050, only eight countries — the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Tanzania — will account for half the projected growth in global population.
India will be the most populous country by Mid Year says the latest UN Data
— Sidhant Sibal (@sidhant) April 19, 2023
- India's population: 1,428.6 million
- China Population: 1,425.7 million pic.twitter.com/daXrNtg84P
Challenges for India
Poonam Muttreja, an official of the Population Foundation of India, said that although India had done many things right in tackling population growth, “at the same time, [India must] make sure that girls and women are not pushed into early marriages and pregnancies, which limit their aspirations.”
The report also raised the predicament of introducing family planning measures in India. It pointed to 2021, when some states in India proposed a two-child family planning policy, including financial incentives for sterilization, as well as penalties in the form of debarment from certain government positions for those who exceeded the target family size.
Commentators pointed out that such policies could lead to “sexselective abortion, preference for male children, denying the paternity of female children, prenatal sex determination, and violence against women for giving birth to girl children.”
India ahead of China
— Kapil Sibal (@KapilSibal) April 20, 2023
Population :
India 1428 mn
China 1425 mn
Other indicators(2021)
World Bank Data :
GDP
China : $17.73 trillion
India : 3.18 trillion
Unemployment:
China : 4.8%
India: 7.7%
Annual inflation
(consumer prices) :
China : 1%
India : 5.1%
Think about it !
Chinese Response
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said that while population size matters, the size of a country’s talent resource matters more. “China’s demographic dividend has not disappeared, and our talent dividend is in the making. The driving force for China’s development remains strong,” he underscored.
To this end, he noted that nearly 900 million of China’s 1.4 billion people belong to the working age and have, on average, received 10.9 years of education. In addition, for those who have newly entered the workforce, their average years of education is 14 years.
Moreover, the spokesperson said China has implemented “a national strategy to respond to population ageing, including a third-child policy and supporting measures to address demographic changes.”