India is fast learning to manage its ‘demographic dividend’ and registering significant success in tackling illiteracy, but remains a country that discriminates against its girl children — this is the short summary of the provisional results of Census 2011 released today.
India’s population is now over 1.21 billion (121 crore), up from 1.02 billion in 2001 — 17.5 per cent of the human race lives in the country. But for the first time since 1921, India has added fewer people in 10 years than in the preceding decade. The percentage decadal growth during 2001-11 has registered the sharpest fall since independence — down 3.9 percentage points from 21.54 per cent to 17.64 per cent.
The full report will be out next year. The figures released today are an aggregate of data reported by enumerators in every state, and are yet to be checked for omissions or duplications.
The six most populous states of Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh have all registered healthy declines in their growth rates for the decade. In fact, as many as 25 states and Union Territories have recorded an average annual population growth rate of 2 per cent or less during this period — with 15 of them growing less than 1.5 per cent annually.
In 2001, only four states and UTs recorded an average annual growth rate of under 1.5 per cent.
There is good news in literacy numbers as well. The literacy rate has risen from 64.83 per cent in 2001 to 74.04 per cent in this Census.
More satisfying is the finding that literacy has spread much faster among women than men — there are now 50 per cent more literate women than in 2001; the corresponding figure for men is 32 per cent.
“The numbers are along expected lines. Growth rate was poised to go down in most parts of the country. In fact, the fall in growth rates is one of the direct consequences of rising female literacy levels,” said Professor K Nagaraj, formerly with the Madras Institute of Development Studies.
The feelgood story is soured, however, by the continuing decline in the numbers of girl children. The latest figures show that in the age group of 0-6, the number of girls per thousand boys has fallen to 914 from 927 in 2001. This number was 976 in 1961, and has since fallen consistently.
“This is a matter of grave concern,” Census Commissioner of India C Chandramauli, who released the provisional figures, said.
The overall sex ratio has shown an improvement, though. The number of women per thousand men is 940, up from 933 in 2001.
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