Question

write a essay on impact of population growth in an economy of india .

Answer 1

It shall be noted that the decades of population growth have led to the population explosion and have started being regarded as to be a big hindrance to the success of economic planning and development on one hand and a dividend to India's growth characteristics on the other hand.

The impact is as follows:

1) India's population growth at a rate of 1.8 percent per annum requires an investment of 7.2% of national income, in order to double the per-capita income. This adversely affects the growth rate of the economy as larger resources are being deployed away from the investment in order to run several welfare programs for the people of India

2) High birth rate and low expectancy of life mean a large number of dependents in the total population.  They are unproductive consumers. The burden of dependents reduces the capacity of the people to save. So the rate of capital formation falls.

3) Rapid rate of growth of the population has been the root cause of the food problems. People do not get a sufficient quantity of food due to the low availability of food which affects their health and productivity. Low productivity causes low per capita income and thus poverty.

4) Large size of population results in a large army of the labor force. But due to a shortage of capital resources, it becomes difficult to provide gainful employment to the entire working population. Disguised unemployment in rural areas and open unemployment in urban areas are the normal features of an underdeveloped country like India.

5) Rapid growth of the population accounts for the low standard of living in India.

6) Population explosion gives rise to a number of social problems. It leads to the migration of people from rural areas to urban areas causing the growth of slum areas. People live in most unhygienic and insanitary conditions.

7) Rising rate of population growth exerts pressure on land. Rapid population growth tends to overuse the country’s natural resources. It adversely affects the economic development of the country.

8) Population explosion leads to environmental degradation. A higher birth rate brings more pollution, more toxic wastes, and damage to the biosphere.

9) Rapidly growing population necessitates large investments in social infrastructure and diverts resources from directly productive assets. Due to the scarcity of resources, it is not possible to provide educational, health, medical, transport, and housing facilities to the entire population.