What’s in the news?

• The latest data from the National Family Health Survey-5 (NFHS-5) provides evidence of an uptake in the use of modern contraceptives in rural and urban areas, an improvement in family planning demands being met, and a decline in the average number of children borne by a woman.
• The data prove that the country’s population is stabilising and fears over a population explosion and calls for a two-child policy are misguided.

Key Findings

• The first part of the NFHS-5 report, which was made public earlier this month, records data for 17 States and five Union Territories. 
• The analysis of the data by the international non-profit Population Council (PC) shows that the Total Fertility Rate (number of children born per woman) has decreased across 14 out of 17 States and is either at 2.1 children per woman or less.
• This also implies that most States have attained replacement level fertility, i.e., the average number of children born per woman at which a population exactly replaces itself from one generation to the next.
• While during NFHS-3 and NFHS-4, conducted between 2005 and 2016, there was a decline in the use of modern methods of contraception (oral pills, condoms, intra-uterine device) across 12 of 22 States and UTs, in NFHS-5 as many as 11 out of 12 States where there was a slump have witnessed an increase in their use.
• Experts draw attention to the rise in child marriages recorded by the Survey and appeal that policy makers should pay attention to this area to curb early pregnancies.

Refernce:

1. https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/health-data-shows-india-doesnt-need-a-two-child-policy-experts/article33396873.ece