Chapter - 2
Demographic Structure of Indian Society
️ Demographics :-
The systematic study of population is called demography. Its English synonym is Demography, two Greek words Demos – People and Graphene i.e. description i.e. description of the people.
With this , the study of birth, death, migration, sex ratio etc. is done.
️ Types of Demography :-
There are mainly two types of Demography.
Morphological Demography :- In this the size of population is studied.
Social Demography :- In this, the social, economic and political aspects of the population are considered.
️ Demographic data :-
Demographic data is important for the formulation and implementation of state policies such as economic development, water welfare policies .
️ Principle of Population Growth :-
Thomas Robert Malthus's Theory of Population Growth (1766 - 1834): -
Population increases by geometric ratio. like 2 , 4 , 8 , 16 , 32
Increase in food producer occurs mathematically. For example, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 etc.
This creates an imbalance between the population and the food supply.
Population growth should be controlled to increase prosperity.
️ Two types of population control :-
Malthus has mentioned restriction of two types of population control.
Natural deterrence /obstacle:- Like famine, earthquake, flood, war sickness etc.
Artificial detention/obstruction:- Such as marriage at an older age, sexual abstinence, observance of celibacy etc.
Contradicting Malthus' doctrine: -
Economic growth can exceed population growth. As in the countries of Europe. Poverty and hunger spread due to unequal distribution of economic resources rather than population growth. (liberals and Marxists)
️ Theory of Demographic Transition :-
Population growth is linked to overall levels of economic development.
There are three basic stages of population growth .
The first stage is the reduction of population growth in the society because the society is technically backward. (Both death rate and birth rate are very high.
The second stage is the population explosion transition period, as the society moves from a backward stage to an advanced stage, during which the rate of population growth becomes very high.
In the third stage also, the population growth rate remains low in the developed society because in such a society both the death rate and the birth rate are very low.
️ Birth Rate :-
The number of live births per thousand persons in a year is called the birth rate.
️ Mortality rate :-
The number of dead persons per thousand persons in a particular area is called death rate.
️ Natural Growth Rate or Population Growth Rate :-
The difference between birth rate and death rate. When this difference is zero or less then we can say that the population has stabilized or has reached the replacement level.
️ Substitution Level :-
This is a stage when as many new babies are born to fill the gap of old people who die. Kerala's total fertility rates in India are actually below replacement level.
Fertility rates of Himachal Pradesh, West Bengal, Karnataka, Maharashtra are equal to replacement level. Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh are the states which are above the replacement level. Behind this state-to-state variation, there may or may not be an increase in the levels of education and awareness.
️ Fertility Rate :-
The number of live births behind the unit of female childbearing age (15-49 years) .
️ Infant Mortality Rate :-
Number of children who died before the age of one year out of 1000 born alive .
️ Maternal Mortality Rate :-
The number of women who died after giving birth to one thousand infant births.
️ Sex Ratio :-
Number of females per thousand males during a given period (in a particular area)
️ Age Structure of Population :-
The proportion of persons in different age groups of the total population.
️ Dependency Ratio :-
The proportion of the population that is dependent on the working population for a living. In this, the working class is in the age group of 15-64 years . Children and the elderly are dependent.
️ Increasing dependency ratio :-
This can be a cause of concern in countries where the population is grappling with the problem of old age as the burden on people of working age increases with the increase in the number of dependents.
️ Falling Dependency Ratio :-
It can become a source of economic growth and prosperity because there the proportion of working people is more than the number of non-working people. This is called the demographic dividend.
️ Birth rate and death rate in India :-
Birth rate is such a socio-cultural phenomenon in which change comes relatively slowly. Himachal Pradesh, West Bengal, Karnataka, Maharashtra have very low total fertility rates. Fertility rates are very high in Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.
️ Age Structure of Indian Population :-
Most of the Indians are in puberty. Kerala has attained the age structure status of developed countries. The proportion of youth in Uttar Pradesh is high and the proportion of old people is low.
️ 'Demographic Dividend' in India :-
The stage of population transition in the demographic structure in which the earning population ie 15-49 age group is more than the non earning (dependent class) ie 60+ age group population, then it is called demographic dividend. This can happen when the proportion of working people keeps on increasing.
️ Female-Male Ratio :-
The male sex ratio has been declining in India. The reason for this is gender-specific abortion, killing of girl child, child marriage, not getting nutritious food. The sex ratio is different in different parts of the country. Kerala is the highest state and lowest in Haryana, Punjab Chandigarh.
Population density: -
Population density refers to the number of people living per square kilometer • m •. Due to the increasing population in India, the population density is also increasing.
️ Lack of fulfillment of entitlement :-
Amartya Sen and many scholars have shown that famines have been caused not only because of the decline in the production of food grains, but also due to lack of fulfillment of entitlements or the inability of people to buy food or get it in some way. Therefore the government has enacted a law named National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) to solve the problem of hunger and starvation.
️ Literacy :-
Literacy is a means of attaining power. Literacy improves the economy, increases health awareness and participation in welfare works. While Kerala is ahead in literacy, the state of Bihar is far behind. The literacy rate is even lower among Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
️ Rural Urban Variations :-
India is called the country of villages. Cities are becoming attractive places for villagers. People from villages are migrating to cities for employment.
The means of public relations and mass communication like radio, television, newspapers are now presenting pictures of urban lifestyle and consumption patterns to the people living in rural areas. As a result, people living in remote villages become familiar with the luxuries and amenities of the city, they also have the desire to lead a more consummatory life.
️ National Family Planning Program :-
The National Family Planning Program was started so that population growth could be controlled. In this, various methods of birth control were adopted. The family planning program suffered a major setback during the National Emergency (1975–1976) (sterilization for men and ducting for women). The new government named it as National Family Welfare Programme. In this new guidelines were made.
The objectives of this program have been broadly the same - to try to move towards socially desirable direction by influencing the rate and nature of population growth.
Most of the poor and powerless people were sterilized in large numbers by force and huge pressure was put on the government employees to bring people to sterilization camps organized for sterilization. The program was widely opposed by the public.
️ Data of 15th Census of India 2011 :-
Female male ratio :- 943 : 1000
Most populous state :- Uttar Pradesh
State with minimum population :- Sikkim
State with highest maternal mortality rate :- Uttar Pradesh
State with lowest maternal mortality rate :- Coral
State with highest infant mortality rate :- Madhya Pradesh
State with lowest infant mortality rate :- Manipur
Literacy :- Male-80.9%, Female-64.6%
Largest (in area) :- Rajasthan
Smallest state (in area) :- Goa
