Viksit Bharat: The need for devising robust policies to harness potential of India’s evolving demography
In her interim budget last month, Nirmala Sitharaman proposed establishing a panel to deliberate on challenges arising from population growth and demographic changes so that India can attain developed country status by 2047. To this effect, it becomes critical to decipher the intricacies of these challenges and delineate a clear path forward. What precisely are these challenges, and how can they be effectively confronted to pave the way for a prosperous and inclusive future? I present six challenges that hold the key to unlocking India's true potential.
'Fast population growth,' while historically significant, is not the paramount challenge we confront today. Surpassing China as the world's most populous country last year marked a watershed moment. But recent data heralds a major shift: India stands on the brink of achieving a total fertility rate of 2.1, a threshold revered as 'replacement level fertility' by demographers. While this milestone doesn't signify an immediate halt to population growth, it signals a pivotal juncture in our demographic evolution.
'Population momentum' implies that growth persists for a generation, although at a decelerated pace, with stabilisation projected by 2050. Yet, the true trials lie beyond numbers, in the nuanced challenges that accompany them. Here are six challenges that must be tackled to achieve India's true demographic potential:
1. Quality vs quantity
India must create enough quality jobs for people entering the job market in the next 25 years — even with a
