To seek focus attention on urgency and importance of population issues, World Population Day is observed on July 11 every year. It was established by the United Nations Development Programme in 1989.
Current estimates indicate that roughly 83 million people are being added to the world’s population every year.
The celebrations of the day involves bringing light to the exploding population and the importance of reproductive health. Population issues include things like family planning, human rights, right to health, the baby’s health, gender equality, child marriage, use of contraceptives, sex education, awareness about sexually transmitted disease, etc. TV channels and radio broadcasts various programs related to family planning.
The nine standards of family planning are as follows:
- Non-discrimination: Family planning information and services cannot be restricted based on race, sex, language, religion, political affiliation, national origin, age, economic status, place of residence, disability status, marital status, sexual orientation or gender identity.
- Available: Countries must ensure that family planning commodities and services are accessible to everyone.
- Accessible: Countries must ensure that family planning commodities and services are accessible to everyone.
- Acceptable: Contraceptive services and information must be provided in a dignified manner, respecting both modern medical ethics and the cultures of those being accommodated.
- Good quality: Family planning information must be communicated and scientifically accurate.
- Informed decision-making: Every person must be empowered to make reproductive choices with full autonomy, free of pressure, coercion or misrepresentation.
- Privacy and confidentiality: All individuals must enjoy the right to privacy when seeking family planning information and services.
- Participation: Countries must ensure the active and informed participation of individuals in decisions that affect them, including health issues.
- Accountability: Health systems, education systems, leaders and policymakers must be accountable to the people they serve in all efforts to realize the human right to family planning.
World Population Day: All you need to know
Causes of Population Explosion in India:
According to recent United Nation Projections, India is set to surpass China as the world’s most populous country by 2027. There are several factors responsible for this explosion. The prime cause is poverty. Poor people often consider children as assets who help them to supplement family income even at the tender age. Illiteracy also being a cause, rural people are not aware. In India around 36% males and 61% females are illiterate. Neither they have full knowledge of family planning nor they know about the consequences of excessive childbirth. Child marriage and multi-marriage system is also one of the main causes of population explosion. Even though legally the marriageable age of a girl is 18 years, the concept of early marriage still prevails, and getting married at a young age prolongs the childbearing age. Also, in India, marriage is a sacred obligation and a universal practice, where almost every woman is married at the reproductive age.
According to current estimates, India’s population will peak in the early 2060s at 1.7 billion. The birth rates are still higher in India. We have been successful in declining the death rates but the same cannot be said for birth rates.
