essay on population census

Censuses: Their Importance and Challenges Essay

The value of a population census is that it will allow knowing the actual situation in the population and making predictions in many aspects of demographic, social, and political life. The population census is almost a non-alternative source of various information about the population as a whole and for each of its administrative-territorial units (U.S. Census Bureau, 2021). The population census is a component and integral part of the national statistical system of the country, the primary source of data on the population and its living conditions.

Information from the population census is needed to help in the development of programs for the construction and distribution of housing, for demographic and migration processes, for education, health care, the social sphere, and job creation. The population census also gives a complete picture of jobs, labor resources, and business. The results of the population census reflect the economic, demographic, and social changes that took place in the country during the intercensal period. The statistical data obtained during the population census serve as the basis for forming budgets at all levels.

The census organizers are already facing different social and technological challenges. Population mentality, declining load on respondents, and growing information needs and information technology development lead to the growing demand for reforms and adjustments. In this case, Internet censuses can become an auspicious direction in demographic statistics. For these developments, however, financial injections are needed, as well as the multichannel approach for gathering information. It provides flexibility but, at the same time, requires a complicated system for checking the quality of data sources. The increase of Internet usage, in its turn, requires public confidence in the protection of their data provided. Thus, the future of censuses relies on several factors which require some preparation for implementation.

U.S. Census Bureau (2021). Center for Economic Research Report: 2020 .

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What Is the US Census and Why Is It Important?

By Jillian Kohn | June 14, 2017

What is a Census?

A census is a procedure that acquires information about people in a given population, and the data collected impacts the design and implementation of policies and laws in governmental sectors including education, housing, transportation, health, and environmental protection. The census is also used as a tool to measure the effectiveness of past policies within these government realms. Aside from state and local government use, businesses can also use census data to assess markets and consumer demand to make decisions involving investments and new product development.

How the Census Began…

The American census has a history almost as long as the nation’s. Due to the Constitutional requirement for a population count, the first census was recorded in 1790. Although the US census has long played a role in Congress’s work, the permanent Census Bureau wasn’t created until over one hundred years later in 1902; the census became part of the Department of the Interior and the following year the Department of Commerce and Labor, and finally the Department of Commerce where it has since remained.

… to How Far We’ve Come

From a simple head count that only included measures of race, age, and sex conducted by 650 enumerators in 1790 to a decennial (every ten years) report that includes over 200 different surveys, facilitated by over 635,000 enumerators today, the census has changed throughout time in order to accurately and effectively measure the demographics of the American people. Today, the census includes surveys such as the Current Population Survey, the Survey of Income and Program Participation, and the American Housing Survey, covers more than 98% of commercial activity in the United States, and provides policy makers with demographic and economic characteristics of people living in the US.

Why is the Census Important?

Arguably, the most important role of the census is population apportionment. Apportionment determines how the 435 members of the House of Representatives will be divided among the states. Contrary to senators, of which every state has two, the number of representatives per state are determined solely based on population. Today, each member of the House represents roughly 700,000 constituents.

The census provides policy makers with accurate demographic information of their constituents so effective and representative policies may be enacted and federal assistance may be distributed. Each question on the census aids policymakers in the distribution of over $400 billion  of funding for communities across the country. These policies can affect many aspects of citizen’s lives ranging from housing districts and one’s representative to allocations for highways, healthcare, hospitals, and schools. The allocation of funds can change dramatically based on population trends.

Using U.S. Census Data

The census reports human population trends, a central focus of PopEd curricula. In order to create relevant materials to teach about population and human impact on natural resources, environmental quality, and human well-being, the Population Education programs relies on data supplied by the US census.

But all Americans, whether they know it or not, benefit from the census and indirectly  rely on census data . We look forward to the 2020 Census!

Related Resources

People count.

Students conduct a census of their schoolmates’ households, graph their data, and then analyze the results to make a... Read More »

How Many Fish in the Sea?

Students estimate a fish population (using goldfish crackers on a flat surface) by sampling. Students will be able to:... Read More »

About Population Education

Population Education provides K-12 teachers with innovative, hands-on lesson plans and professional development to teach about human population growth and its effects on the environment and human well-being. PopEd is a program of Population Connection. Learn More About PopEd .

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Assessing the 2020 Census

Final report.

Since 1790, the U.S. census has been a recurring, essential civic ceremony in which everyone counts; it reaffirms a commitment to equality among all, as political representation is explicitly tied to population counts. Assessing the 2020 Census looks at the quality of the 2020 Census and its constituent operations, drawing appropriate comparisons with prior censuses. The report acknowledges the extraordinary challenges the Census Bureau faced in conducting the census and provides guidance as it plans for the 2030 Census. In addition, the report encourages research and development as the goals and designs for the 2030 Census are developed, urging the Census Bureau to establish a true partnership with census data users and government partners at the state, local, tribal, and federal levels.

RESOURCES AT A GLANCE

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Suggested Citation

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2023. Assessing the 2020 Census: Final Report . Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/27150. Import this citation to: Bibtex EndNote Reference Manager

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Consensus Study Report: Consensus Study Reports published by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine document the evidence-based consensus on the study’s statement of task by an authoring committee of experts. Reports typically include findings, conclusions, and recommendations based on information gathered by the committee and the committee’s deliberations. Each report has been subjected to a rigorous and independent peer-review process and it represents the position of the National Academies on the statement of task.

The Importance of Census Accuracy: Uses of Census Data

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• First Online: 14 February 2019

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This Chapter provides readers with many reasons why the Census count is so important, including the fact that Census data are the backbone of our democratic system of government. In addition, Census-related figures are used to distribute more than $800 billion in federal funding each year to states and localities. Countless decisions in the public and private sectors are based on Census data. Moreover, the impact of flaws in Census counts often last a decade because population estimates, projections, and survey weights, are derived from Census counts.

You have full access to this open access chapter,  Download chapter PDF

2.1 Introduction

To understand the importance of differential Census undercounts and omissions it is important to understand how Census data are used. In addition to our scientific and scholarly interest in obtaining correct Decennial Census counts, there are many practical and policy-related reasons why it is important to assess Census coverage. In many cases, Census coverage errors are important because they are both a data problem and a social equity issue.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau ( 2017 ), data from the Decennial Census are used for many important applications including:

Allocating political power

Distribution of federal funds through funding formulas

Civil rights enforcement

Business applications

Post-Census population estimates and projections

Providing weights for sample surveys

Providing denominators for rates

Community planning

Economic and social science research.

A more detailed description of how Census data are used is provided in Appendix A of the Census Bureau’s 2020 Census Complete Count Committee Guide (U.S. Census Bureau 2018 ). A number of these points are discussed in more detail below.

2.2 Political Power

Constitutional scholar Leavitt ( 2018 , p. 2) provides a clear idea of the importance of the Census when he states,

It is impossible to overstate the constitutional significance of the Decennial Census. The requirement that has become a mandate to count each and every individual in the country--- the ‘actual Enumeration’ of the population in every decade ---is embedded in the sixth sentence of the Constitution. It is the very first act that the Constitution prescribes as an express responsibility of the new federal Government.

The fact that the Decennial Census is mentioned early in the Constitution by the founding fathers, suggests the central role they envisioned for it in our system of governance. Counts from the Census are used to distribute political power both in terms of assigning seats in the U.S. House of Representatives to states based on population and in the judicially mandated one-person/one-vote rule used for constructing political districts (Grofman 1982 ; McKay 1965 ; Balinski and Young 1982 ; Baumle and Poston 2004 ). The “one person-one vote” rule requires election districts to be equal (or nearly equal) in population size. Calculation of election district population size is almost always based on data from the Decennial Census.

The fundamental relationship between Census counts and political power was summarized by Heer ( 1968 , p. 11) 50 years ago,

Where a group defined by racial or ethnic terms and concentrated in special political jurisdictions is significantly undercounted in relation other groups. Then individual members of that group are thereby deprived of the constitutional right to equal representation in the House of Representatives and, by inference, in other legislative bodies.

Decennial Census counts for states are used for apportioning the seats in the U.S. House of Representatives and sometimes small differences can be important in determining which state gets the last seat to be assigned (Conk 1987 ; Baumle and Poston 2018 ). For example, Crocker ( 2011 ) found that if the 2010 Decennial Census count for North Carolina had been 15,753 higher it would have received an additional seat in Congress. Baumle and Poston ( 2004 ) also show that small differences in state Census counts can change which state gets the last Congressional seat assigned.

Based on projecting the 2017 Census Bureau population estimates to 2020, Brace ( 2017 ) predicts 15 to 17 states will experience changes in their congressional delegation after the post-2020 re-apportionment. However, many states are close to gaining or losing a seat depending on the demographic changes between now and 2020 and the quality of the Census count in each state. Consequently, details about how the Census is conducted could have an impact on apportionment of Congress following the 2020 Census. For example, Baumle and Poston ( 2018 ) show that failure to count non-citizens in the 2020 Census would result in several congressional seats changing states in the apportionment following the 2020 Census.

I could not find a definitive number of election districts where Census data are used to draw boundaries for political districts. In addition to the 435 seats in Congress, almost all of the 7383 state legislators are elected from single member districts (National Conference of State Legislators 2017 ). Also, nearly ever large city has city council members elected from single-member districts and the same is true for county commissioners. School board members and many special districts also use Census data to construct districts. Therefore, the number of election districts based on Census results must be at least 10,000.

Siegel ( 2002 , Chap. 2) as well as Teitelbaum ( 2005 ) provide additional examples of how demographic data are used in a variety of political applications. The bottom line is that any geographic area that is undercounted is not likely to get its fair share of political power (Anderson and Fienberg 2001 ; Bryant and Dunn 1995 ).

2.3 Distribution of Public Funds

Decennial Census data are also used in many federal funding formulas that distribute federal funds to states and localities each year (Murray 1992 ; U.S. Senate 1992 ; Reamer 2010 ; Blumerman and Vidal 2009 ; Hotchkiss and Phelan 2017 ). Recent research indicates Census-derived data were used to distribute more than $850 billion to states and localities through 302 programs in Fiscal Year 2016 (Reamer 2018 ). Table  2.1 shows data for the 16 largest federal programs that use Census-derived data to distribute funds. Places that experience a net undercount do not receive their fair share of formula-driven public resources (PriceWaterhouseCoopers 2001 ). The distribution of federal funds based on Census data will impact some groups more than others. The Annie E. Casey Foundation ( 2018 ) shows that these funding formulas are particularly important for programs that support needy children.

Moreover, the amount of federal money given out through funding formulas has increased in recent years. The increase is heavily driven by Medicaid and Medicare Part B where health care costs are rising faster than inflation and the large baby boomer generation is aging and expanding the number of recipients in these programs.

One question that always arises in this area is,” How much money does a state lose for each uncounted person?” There is no definitive answer to this question, but an analysis by Reamer ( 2018 ) shows that for five programs that use the Federal Matching Assistance Percentage (FMAP) states, on average, would lose $1091 each year for each uncounted person. In some states the figure was lower, and, in some states, it was higher. These figures only apply to the 37 states which are not already at the minimum FMAP value of 50 percent and only for five programs. Another study following the 2000 Census that was focused on 169 metropolitan areas concluded the loss over the 2002–2012 period was $3392 per uncounted person in these jurisdictions but the authors note this estimate is conservative because not all programs are included (PriceWaterhouseCooper 2001 , p. ES-1). In another report focused on Idaho (Miller 2018 ) concludes, “It’s estimated each person counted brings about $1200 per year in federal funding to state and local government.”

2.3.1 Federal Distribution 2015–2030 Based on Census-Derived Figures

Reamer ( 2018 ) estimates that in Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 the federal government distributed at least $865 billion to states and localities based on Census-derived data. The $865 billion figure is based on the largest 35 federal programs that use Census-derived data to distribute money and there are many additional programs that are not included in this figure. In 2010 Reamer ( 2010 ) estimated that the federal government distributed about $420 billion to states and localities based on Census-derived data in Fiscal Year (FY) 2008. The $420 billion in FY 2008 amounts to $465 billion in 2015 dollars. Consequently, there was an increase from $465 billion to $865 billion between FY2008 and FY2015. Some of the increase from FY2008 to FY2015 is based on adding programs to the calculation and some of the increase is based on increased spending by programs identified in 2008.

The increase between FY2008 and FY2015 amounts to a little more than 11 percent per year. Data shown in Table  2.2 indicate what would happen between FY2015 and FY2030 if there were an 11 percent increase per year in the amount of federal funds distributed based on Census-derived data. Perhaps most importantly in the decades following the 2020 Census more than $26 trillion dollars could be distributed to states and localities on the basis of 2020 Census-derived data.

Of course, no one knows exactly what will happen in the future regarding the distribution of federal funds based on Census-derived data and the measurement of change between FY2008 and FY2105 is not precise, but the scenario reflected in Table  2.2 provides one plausible trajectory. Moreover, even if the projected dollars in Table  2.2 are too high by 10 or 20%, the amount of money distributed between 2020 and 2030 using Census-derived data is still enormous.

Demographic data are also used to distribute state government funds within states, but I was unable to find a good estimate of how much money is regularly distributed by state governments based on Census data.

2.4 Population Estimates, Projections, and Surveys

The undercounts in the Decennial Census also have implications for post-Census population estimates and projections. The Census Bureau’s post-Census population estimates program, which produces yearly national, state, and county population estimates, uses data from the Decennial Census as the starting point to produce post-Census estimates (U.S. Census Bureau 2014a ). If an age cohort is undercounted in the Census, that cohort will be under-represented in the Census Bureau’s population estimates for the next decade.

Many population projections also start with the Decennial Census counts, so undercounts in the Decennial Census are likely to be reflected in projections for many years (U.S. Census Bureau 2014b ). State population projections, such as those available from the University of Virginia’s Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service ( 2013 ), are also affected by Census undercounts. In discussing where to get data for state and local projections Smith et al. ( 2001 , p. 113) indicate, “The most commonly used source--and the most comprehensive in terms of demographic and geographic detail—is the Decennial Census of population and housing.”

Decennial Census results and the Census Bureau’s post-Census population estimates are often used to weight sample surveys both inside and outside government. If the Decennial Census counts and subsequent population estimates underestimate a population group, the weighted survey results will reflect this error (Jensen and Hogan 2017 ; O’Hare and Jensen 2014 ; O’Hare et al. 2013 ). Several analysts have shown how Census undercounts distort estimates of poverty rates for children (Hernandez and Denton 2001 ; Daponte and Wolfson 2003 ; O’Hare 2017 ).

In addition, data from the Census Bureau are often used as denominators for constructing rates such as the child mortality rate. Census undercounts may skew such rates. For example, the 2010 U.S. death rate for all children age 1–4 in 2010 was 26.5 per 100,000 and for Hispanic children age 1–4 it was 22.7 per 100,000 (Murphy et al. 2013 ). These rates are based on using the Census counts as denominators. If one had used the DA estimates for the population age 1–4 instead of the Census counts, the death rate for all children age 1–4 would have been 25.3 (rather than 26.5) and the rate for Hispanic children age 1–4 would have been 20.9 (rather than 22.7). This represents a 5% difference for all children and an 8 percent difference for Hispanic children. This shows how Census undercounts can lead to flawed rates.

2.5 Using Census Data for Planning

Data from the U.S. Decennial Census counts as well as estimates and projections which are based on the Census are used for many planning activities including schools (Edmonston 2001 ; McKibben 2007 , 2012 ). Flaws in the Census counts can lead to inefficient use of public funds. For example, the high net undercounts of young children in many large cities and urban counties are likely to compromise school planning in those areas (O’Hare 2015 ).

Census data are also used in health care planning (Koebnick et al. 2012 ). For example, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services ( 2018 ) shows how Census are used in health care planning and delivery in rural America.

2.6 Use of Census Data in Business

Census data have been used in business planning as well (Headd 2003 ). Among other uses, Census data are used by business to determine where to start or expand a business and to determine potential customers for new products. A recent U.S. Department of Commerce publication ( 2015 , p. 2) identifies several business and commercial uses of Census data including;

Create effective marketing or merchandising strategies to better serve customers and communities

Inform hiring decisions and workforce evaluation

Forecast growth and sales to make better strategic decisions

Stock shelves with the goods suited to local customers preferences

Invest in infrastructure improvements

Perform risk analysis.

According to the National Research Council ( 1995 , p. 292);

Retail establishments and restaurants, banks and other financial institutions, media and advertising, insurance companies, utility companies, health care providers, and many other segments of the business world use Census data.

One business group working on the 2020 Census, Council for Strong America ( 2018 ), states

A thriving economy relies on timely information about the U.S. population and how it is shifting and changing throughout the country. The Decennial census provides the broadest set of data about residents in the United States that no other body produces.

It is also important to note that many of the data products or data systems used by businesses depend on Census data as a benchmark. In the data-driven and digital-driven work of business decision making, at least one business leader (McDonald 2017 , p. 2) recognizes the important role the Census plays.

In such a digital-driven world, the Decennial counting of noses known as the U.S. Census may seem irrelevant or outdated. But in fact, the data that the Census Bureau collects –both in its Decennial count and the annual American Community Survey (ACS) – have never been more important to business constituencies.

2.7 Use of Census Data in Civil Rights Protection

For many groups, the Census is seen a civil rights issue (Leadership Conference on Civil Rights 2017 ). In addition to heavy use of Decennial Census data in the context of redistricting and voting rights, data from the Census are used to examine equality in jobs and education opportunities. A flawed Census can undermine the ability to examine such issues fairly. According to the Leadership Conference Education Fund ( 2017 , p. 1), “Federal agencies rely on Census and American Community Service (ACS) data to monitor discrimination and implement civil rights laws that protect voting rights, equal employment opportunity, and more.”

In addition to the use of Census data for many obvious civil rights purposes, it is also used for some lessen known civil rights programs. For example, under section 203 of the Voting Rights Act, data from the Census Bureau are used to identify jurisdictions that must provide language assistance in voting that is based on the number of people in the jurisdiction that speak a language other than English (Advancing Justice 2016 ).

2.8 Public Perceptions of Growth or Decline

High net undercounts can provide misleading public impressions about the size or growth of the population in a given location. And these perceptions can have a significant impact on public and private investment decisions related to a community.

This point is difficult to quantify but in many instances the size of a population translates into the importance politicians and marketers give it. In response to the 2000 Census, one public official stated, “Pride in the community is involved. I want people to really know how big we are. We aren’t just a little burgh in south Louisiana” (cited in Prewitt 2003 , p. 7). If communities are perceived as losing population because of an undercount, it can affect the willingness of investors to put money in those communities.

2.9 Science and Scholarship

West and Fein ( 1990 ) as well as Clogg and colleagues ( 1989 ) review several ways in which the Decennial Census undercounts affect social science research results. Clogg and his colleagues ( 1989 , p. 559) conclude, “Because undercount rates (or coverage rates) vary by age, race, residence and other factors typically studied in social science research, important conceptual difficulties arise in using Decennial Census results to corroborate sampling frames or to validate survey results.”

2.10 Census Planning

Finally, to improve Census-taking procedures in the future, it is important to understand which groups are undercounted at the highest rates in the past Censuses. Information on net undercounts and omissions have been used by the Census Bureau to improve the Census-taking procedure from decade to decade. For example, noting the high net undercount of young children in the 2010 Census prompted the Census Bureau to develop plans to reduce the net undercount of young children in the 2020 Census (Jarmin 2018 ; Walejko and Konicki 2018 ).

2.11 Summary

Data from the Decennial Census are used for many important applications including:

Population estimates and projections

Public and private sector planning

Economic and social science research

Improving the accuracy of the Census over time.

It is clear from the content of this Chapter that the Census is more than just a statistical exercise. Census data are used in some of the most important aspects of our society including our system of governance, distribution of federal dollars for many important programs, and thousands of public and private sector decisions.

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O’Hare, W.P. (2019). The Importance of Census Accuracy: Uses of Census Data. In: Differential Undercounts in the U.S. Census. SpringerBriefs in Population Studies. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-10973-8_2

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What the data says about immigrants in the U.S.

The United States has long had more immigrants than any other country. In fact, the U.S. is home to one-fifth of the world’s international migrants . These immigrants come from just about every country in the world.

Pew Research Center regularly publishes research on U.S. immigrants . Based on this research, here are answers to some key questions about the U.S. immigrant population.

Pew Research Center conducted this analysis to answer common questions about immigration to the United States and the U.S. immigrant population.

Data for 2023 comes from Census Bureau tabulations of the 2023 American Community Survey . The remaining data in this analysis comes mainly from Center tabulations of Census Bureau microdata the American Community Surveys ( IPUMS ) and historical data from decennial censuses.

This analysis also features estimates of the size of the U.S. unauthorized immigrant population . The estimates presented in this research for 2022 are the Center’s latest. Estimates of annual changes in the foreign-born population are from the Current Population Survey for 1994-2023 and the American Community Surveys for 2001-2022 (IPUMS), with adjustments for changes in the bureau’s survey methodology over time.

How many people in the U.S. are immigrants?

The U.S. foreign-born population reached a record 47.8 million in 2023, an increase of 1.6 million from the previous year. This is the largest annual increase in more than 20 years , since 2000.

In 1970, the number of immigrants living in the U.S. was about a fifth of what it is today. Growth of this population accelerated after Congress made changes to U.S. immigration laws in 1965.

Immigrants today account for 14.3% of the U.S. population, a roughly threefold increase from 4.7% in 1970. The immigrant share of the population today is the highest since 1910 but remains below the record 14.8% in 1890.

(Because only limited data from the 2023 American Community Survey has been released as of mid-September 2024, the rest of this post focuses on data from 2022.)

Where are U.S. immigrants from?

Mexico is the top country of birth for U.S. immigrants. In 2022, roughly 10.6 million immigrants living in the U.S. were born there, making up 23% of all U.S. immigrants. The next largest origin groups were those from India (6%), China (5%), the Philippines (4%) and El Salvador (3%).

By region of birth, immigrants from Asia accounted for 28% of all immigrants. Other regions make up smaller shares:

• Latin America (27%), excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean (10%), Central America (9%) and South America (9%)
• Europe, Canada and other North America (12%)
• Sub-Saharan Africa (5%)
• Middle East and North Africa (4%)

How have immigrants’ origin countries changed in recent decades?

Before 1965, U.S. immigration law favored immigrants from Northern and Western Europe and mostly barred immigration from Asia. The 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act opened up immigration from Asia and Latin America. The Immigration Act of 1990 further increased legal immigration and allowed immigrants from more countries to enter the U.S. legally.

Since 1965, about 72 million immigrants have come to the United States from different and more countries than their predecessors:

• From 1840 to 1889, about 90% of U.S. immigrants came from Europe, including about 70% from Germany, Ireland and the United Kingdom.
• Almost 90% of the immigrants who arrived from 1890 to 1919 came from Europe. Nearly 60% came from Italy, Austria-Hungary and Russia-Poland.
• Since 1965, about half of U.S. immigrants have come from Latin America, with about a quarter from Mexico alone. About another quarter have come from Asia. Large numbers have come from China, India, the Philippines, Central America and the Caribbean.

The newest wave of immigrants has dramatically changed states’ immigrant populations . In 1980, German immigrants were the largest group in 19 states, Canadian immigrants were the largest in 11 states and Mexicans were the largest in 10 states. By 2000, Mexicans were the largest group in 31 states.

Today, Mexico remains the largest origin country for U.S. immigrants. However, immigration from Mexico has slowed since 2007 and the Mexican-born population in the U.S. has dropped. The Mexican share of the U.S. immigrant population dropped from 29% in 2010 to 23% in 2022.

Where are recent immigrants coming from?

In 2022, Mexico was the top country of birth for immigrants who arrived in the last year, with about 150,000 people. India (about 145,000) and China (about 90,000) were the next largest sources of immigrants. Venezuela, Cuba, Brazil and Canada each had about 50,000 to 60,000 new immigrant arrivals.

The main sources of immigrants have shifted twice in the 21st century. The first was caused by the Great Recession (2007-2009). Until 2007, more Hispanics than Asians arrived in the U.S. each year. From 2009 to 2018, the opposite was true.

Since 2019, immigration from Latin America – much of it unauthorized – has reversed the pattern again. More Hispanics than Asians have come each year.

What is the legal status of immigrants in the U.S.?

Most immigrants (77%) are in the country legally. As of 2022:

• 49% were naturalized U.S. citizens.
• 24% were lawful permanent residents.
• 4% were legal temporary residents.
• 23% were unauthorized immigrants .

From 1990 to 2007, the unauthorized immigrant population more than tripled in size, from 3.5 million to a record high of 12.2 million. From there, the number slowly declined to about 10.2 million in 2019.

In 2022, the number of unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. showed sustained growth for the first time since 2007, to 11.o million.

As of 2022, about 4 million unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. are Mexican. This is the largest number of any origin country, representing more than one-third of all unauthorized immigrants. However, the Mexican unauthorized immigrant population is down from a peak of almost 7 million in 2007, when Mexicans accounted for 57% of all unauthorized immigrants.

The drop in the number of unauthorized immigrants from Mexico has been partly offset by growth from other parts of the world, especially Asia and other parts of Latin America.

The 2022 estimates of the unauthorized immigrant population are our latest comprehensive estimates. Other partial data sources suggest continued growth in 2023 and 2024 .

Who are unauthorized immigrants?

Virtually all unauthorized immigrants living in the U.S. entered the country without legal permission or arrived on a nonpermanent visa and stayed after it expired.

A growing number of unauthorized immigrants have permission to live and work in the U.S. and are temporarily protected from deportation. In 2022, about 3 million unauthorized immigrants had these temporary legal protections. These immigrants fall into several groups:

• Temporary Protected Status (TPS): About 650,000 immigrants have TPS as of July 2022. TPS is offered to individuals who cannot safely return to their home country because of civil unrest, violence, natural disaster or other extraordinary and temporary conditions.
• Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA): Almost 600,000 immigrants are beneficiaries of DACA. This program allows individuals brought to the U.S. as children before 2007 to remain in the U.S.
• Asylum applicants: About 1.6 million immigrants have pending applications for asylum in the U.S. as of mid-2022 because of dangers faced in their home country. These immigrants can stay in the U.S. legally while they wait for a decision on their case.
• Other protections: Several hundred thousand individuals have applied for special visas to become lawful immigrants. These types of visas are offered to victims of trafficking and certain other criminal activities.

In addition, about 500,000 immigrants arrived in the U.S. by the end of 2023 under programs created for Ukrainians (U4U or Uniting for Ukraine ) and people from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela ( CHNV parole ). These immigrants mainly arrived too late to be counted in the 2022 estimates but may be included in future estimates.

Do all lawful immigrants choose to become U.S. citizens?

Immigrants who are lawful permanent residents can apply to become U.S. citizens if they meet certain requirements. In fiscal year 2022, almost 1 million lawful immigrants became U.S. citizens through naturalization . This is only slightly below record highs in 1996 and 2008.

Most immigrants eligible for naturalization apply for citizenship, but not all do. Top reasons for not applying include language and personal barriers, lack of interest and not being able to afford it, according to a 2015 Pew Research Center survey .

Where do most U.S. immigrants live?

In 2022, most of the nation’s 46.1 million immigrants lived in four states: California (10.4 million or 23% of the national total), Texas (5.2 million or 11%), Florida (4.8 million or 10%) and New York (4.5 million or 10%).

Most immigrants lived in the South (35%) and West (33%). Another 21% lived in the Northeast and 11% were in the Midwest.

In 2022, more than 29 million immigrants – 63% of the nation’s foreign-born population – lived in just 20 major metropolitan areas. The largest populations were in the New York, Los Angeles and Miami metro areas. Most of the nation’s unauthorized immigrant population (60%) lived in these metro areas as well.

How many immigrants are working in the U.S.?

In 2022, over 30 million immigrants were in the U.S. workforce. Lawful immigrants made up the majority of the immigrant workforce, at 22.2 million. An additional 8.3 million immigrant workers are unauthorized. This is a notable increase over 2019 but about the same as in 2007 .

The share of workers who are immigrants increased slightly from 17% in 2007 to 18% in 2022. By contrast, the share of immigrant workers who are unauthorized declined from a peak of 5.4% in 2007 to 4.8% in 2022. Immigrants and their children are projected to add about 18 million people of working age between 2015 and 2035. This would offset an expected decline in the working-age population from retiring Baby Boomers.

How educated are immigrants compared with the U.S. population overall?

On average, U.S. immigrants have lower levels of education than the U.S.-born population. In 2022, immigrants ages 25 and older were about three times as likely as the U.S. born to have not completed high school (25% vs. 7%). However, immigrants were as likely as the U.S. born to have a bachelor’s degree or more (35% vs. 36%).

Immigrant educational attainment varies by origin. About half of immigrants from Mexico (51%) had not completed high school, and the same was true for 46% of those from Central America and 21% from the Caribbean. Immigrants from these three regions were also less likely than the U.S. born to have a bachelor’s degree or more.

On the other hand, immigrants from all other regions were about as likely as or more likely than the U.S. born to have at least a bachelor’s degree. Immigrants from South Asia (72%) were the most likely to have a bachelor’s degree or more.

How well do immigrants speak English?

About half of immigrants ages 5 and older (54%) are proficient English speakers – they either speak English very well (37%) or speak only English at home (17%).

Immigrants from Canada (97%), Oceania (82%), sub-Saharan Africa (76%), Europe (75%) and South Asia (73%) have the highest rates of English proficiency.

Immigrants from Mexico (36%) and Central America (35%) have the lowest proficiency rates.

Immigrants who have lived in the U.S. longer are somewhat more likely to be English proficient. Some 45% of immigrants who have lived in the U.S. for five years or less are proficient, compared with 56% of immigrants who have lived in the U.S. for 20 years or more.

Spanish is the most commonly spoken language among U.S. immigrants. About four-in-ten immigrants (41%) speak Spanish at home. Besides Spanish, the top languages immigrants speak at home are English only (17%), Chinese (6%), Filipino/Tagalog (4%), French or Haitian Creole (3%), and Vietnamese (2%).

Note: This is an update of a post originally published May 3, 2017.

• Immigrant Populations
• Immigration & Migration
• Unauthorized Immigration

Mohamad Moslimani is a former research analyst focusing on race and ethnicity at Pew Research Center .

Jeffrey S. Passel is a senior demographer at Pew Research Center .

What we know about unauthorized immigrants living in the U.S.

Cultural issues and the 2024 election, latinos’ views on the migrant situation at the u.s.-mexico border, u.s. christians more likely than ‘nones’ to say situation at the border is a crisis, how americans view the situation at the u.s.-mexico border, its causes and consequences, most popular.

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Essay on Population for Students and Children

500+ words essay on population.

Population refers to the total number of beings living in a particular area. Population helps us get an estimate of the number of beings and how to act accordingly. For instance, if we know the particular population of a city, we can estimate the number of resources it needs. Similarly, we can do the same for animals. If we look at the human population, we see how it is becoming a cause of concern. In particular, the third world countries suffer the most from population explosion. As it is the resources there are limited and the ever-increasing population just makes it worse. On the other hand, there is a problem of low population in many regions.

India population crisis

India faces a major population crisis due to the growing population. If we were to estimate, we can say that almost 17% of the population of the world lives in India alone. India ranks second in the list of most populated countries.

Furthermore, India is also one of the countries with low literacy rates. This factor contributes largely to the population explosion in India. It is usually seen that the illiterate and poor classes have a greater number of children. This happens mainly because they do not have sufficient knowledge about birth control methods . In addition, more people in a family are equals to more helping hands. This means they have better chances of earning.

Moreover, we also see how these classes practice early marriage. This makes it one of the major reasons for a greater population. People marry off their young daughters to men way older than them for money or to get free from their responsibility. The young girl bears children from an early age and continues to do so for a long time.

As India is facing a shortage of resources, the population crisis just adds on to the problem. It makes it quite hard for every citizen to get an equal share of resources. This makes the poor poorer and the rich richer.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

Impact of Population Explosion

Subsequently, pollution levels are on the rise because of the population explosion. As more and more humans are purchasing automobiles, our air is getting polluted. Moreover, the increased need calls for faster rates of industrialization. These industries pollute our water and lands, harming and degrading our quality of life.

In addition, our climate is also facing drastic changes because of human activities. Climate change is real and it is happening. It is impacting our lives very harmfully and must be monitored now. Global warming which occurs mostly due to activities by humans is one of the factors for climate change.

Humans are still able to withstand the climate and adapt accordingly, but animals cannot. This is why wildlife is getting extinct as well.

In other words, man always thinks about his well-being and becomes selfish. He overlooks the impact he is creating on the surroundings. If the population rates continue to rise at this rate, then we won’t be able to survive for long. As with this population growth comes harmful consequences. Therefore, we must take measures to control the population.

{ “@context”: “https://schema.org”, “@type”: “FAQPage”, “mainEntity”: [{ “@type”: “Question”, “name”: “Why is India having a population crisis?”, “acceptedAnswer”: { “@type”: “Answer”, “text”: “India suffers from a population crisis because the literacy rate is very low. This causes other problems which contribute to population growth.” } }, { “@type”: “Question”, “name”: “What is the impact of population explosion?”, “acceptedAnswer”: { “@type”: “Answer”, “text”:”Population explosion has a very harmful impact on wildlife and vegetation. Animals are getting extinct due to it and climate change is also happening.”} }] }

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Lesson 4: Use of Census and Related Population Information

Introduction .

Course objectives:

• Identify sources of population information for planning
• Evaluate the quality of information, and
• Explore ways to use population and related information

Expected outcomes:

Acquire skills used to obtain, evaluate and use census information as well as other types of population information used in program planning and management.

This session presents the types of information that can be obtained from the census of population and housing. It is also designed to assist planners in evaluating the quality of census information. Techniques and strategies to collect population information from other sources including representative sample surveys and vital statistics reports will also be covered.

In most countries, the census is conducted every 10 years at a minimum. For the period between census takings, information collected from representative sample surveys can be used to provide population information. Household surveys on agricultural production, manpower, health, housing, and transportation usually collect information on the characteristics of the population. These data can be used for planning purposes.

The lesson ends with a discussion of where to obtain information on vital statistics including births, deaths, fetal deaths, marriages and divorces.  

4.1 What is a Census?

The United Nations defines a population census as the total process of collecting, compiling, and publishing demographic, economic, and social data pertaining to a specific time to all persons in a country or delimited part of a country. As part of a census count, most countries also include a census of housing. It is the process of collecting, compiling and publishing information on buildings, living quarters and building-related facilities such as sewage systems, bathrooms, and electricity, to name a few.

The United Nations lists four essential features of a census:

• Each individual is enumerated separately; the characteristics of each person within the household are recorded separately.
• The census covers a precisely defined territory and includes every person present or residing within its scope. The housing census should include every type of building and living quarters.
• Each person and each type of building and living quarters is enumerated with respect to a well defined point of time.
• The census is taken at regular defined intervals, usually every 10 years.

In most countries, people are counted in their place of usual residence.

4.2 Types of Census Information

Most censuses collect information on:

• Individual residents aged 0 to 100+
• Households including families and unrelated adults
• Housing and related facilities.

A census of population collects information on basic population characteristics including age, sex, marital status, household composition, family characteristics, and household size. Information is also collected on economic measures including labor force participation, occupation, place of work, employment-related industry, and educational attributes such as school attendance, educational attainment, and literacy. Geographic and migration information is also collected. Questions on place of birth, place of usual residence, duration of residence, and prior place of residence allow planners to examine population movements. Some countries also collect information on births and deaths, especially those that do not have a system that adequately registers these vital events.

A census of housing collects information on buildings, living quarters and related facilities. Information is collected on buildings that are used for residential, commercial, or industrial purposes, including the type of structure, the construction materials used for the outer walls, and the year of construction. The type of information that is usually collected on living quarters includes the type and location (rural or urban locale) of the quarters, the number of rooms, the occupancy status and number of occupants, and the types of available facilities such as water, toilets, sewerage, bathing, cooking areas, and lighting. Living quarters can be housing units or collective living quarters. Data on living quarters provide insights into the type and quality of housing that exist in rural and urban areas throughout the country.

4.3 Using Census Information in Planning

In a number of countries, the population census plays a major role in the allocation of elected political seats in government. The number of elected officials for each governmental administrative unit is determined by the population size of a given locale. For some countries, the information is also used in the allocation of government resources. The size of the population determines, in part, the amount of money that is provided by government for development efforts.

For planners, census information is used in just about all planning decisions. The census of population provides information on the age and sex distribution, in addition to household composition and size, all of which are vital in determining the needs of different segments of the population. The census of housing allows planners to assess changes in the quality of housing and related facilities and plan for future housing needs. Table 4-1 provides possible planning-related uses for population and housing data.

4.4 Evaluating the Quality of Census Data

The quality of census information improves each time it is taken. Errors, however, can be found in both developed and developing country census data. Errors in the census can be due to shortcomings in data collection, including failure to count all people. In most countries, there is a small percentage of the population that is homeless and live in the streets because they are too poor to afford shelter. The homeless segment of the population tend to be the hardest people to record during census counts in both developed and developing countries.

Another data quality problem is the failure of respondents to provide correct information. In countries that do not have adequate vital registration systems to record births, residents may not know their exact age and/or the ages of members of the household. The census office checks the quality of age information and adjusts the distribution to account for age misreporting.

In some countries, two types of census forms are used; one that includes all of the residents, and one that includes a sample of residents. When countries wish to obtain detailed information about households, they select part of the population and use a longer questionnaire. The selection of respondents is based on sampling procedures to ensure that a representative population is selected. One of the problems with sample data is that sampling errors can occur by chance.

Errors can also take place when census data are compiled and entered into computers. Human errors can emerge during stages of data processing, analysis and compilation.

Governments are aware of potential errors in census data and are continuously evaluating the quality of information. Most statistical offices conduct a post enumeration survey to check on the quality of information. Prior to the census, they identify strategies to reach those whom are homeless. Governments also search for ways to control human error in data processing.

Given the possible problems with census data, planners need to evaluate the quality of data obtained. Suggestions on ways to check the quality of census information are listed below.

• Population growth or decline may be due to changes in census boundary maps, and not changes in population. Close evaluation of changes in census boundary maps is necessary when analyzing population growth or decline between census periods.
• Compare the results to prior census results with old population projections for the area. Determine why change has occurred.
• Building on suggestion 2, develop population pyramids for the prior and current census. Look for changes between age groups. For example, children aged 10-14 in 2000 were age 0-4 in 1990. If change exists in doing this comparison, try to determine why. As an added check, examine the results for ages 0-14 with school enrollments to see if increases or decreases have taken place.
• Examine the procedures for data collection. Were the homeless counted accurately?
• Speak to others in agencies and organizations involved with collecting population and related information. Are their collective results supportive of the census report?

4.5 Other Sources of Information and Data

Representative Sample Surveys

National, regional or state/province representative sample surveys that collect population information on individuals and/or households are a source of data that can be used by planners between census takings. Government ministries, statistics offices, and universities are all excellent resources to learn of available surveys.

It should be mentioned that representative surveys do not have to focus exclusively on population topics to provide useful information for planning. For example, agriculture, manpower, and housing studies, will include population information as part of the background characteristics on households. These surveys usually have information on the age and sex of households, educational attainment, labor force participation, and structure of the household including household size, to name a few. Look at surveys that you have used in the past and determine if they provide population information that can be used to guide planning decisions.

Caution:  These surveys are useful if they represent the true or actual population. You can evaluate whether or not it is a representative sample by investigating the sample selection process. If everyone or every household had an equal chance of selection, then its possible that it is a representative sample survey.

A national representative sample survey that is available for many developing countries is the Demographic and Health Survey (DHS). The survey is designed to provide governments with information on fertility trends, maternal and child health, family planning use, and knowledge of AIDS and sexually transmitted diseases. The DHS includes several key fertility rates including the age specific fertility rate, the general fertility rate, and the total fertility rate. It also provides information on infant and child mortality rates. The reports are primarily used by Ministries of Health at the national and regional levels for family planning, AIDS prevention programs, and the maternal and child health care services.

How can planners use the Demographic and Health Surveys?

The survey serves two useful purposes. First, the information on fertility behavior helps planners study trends in fertility. As mentioned in Lesson 3, high levels of fertility can lead to high numbers of children in the 0-14 age cohorts. The high proportion of youth will continue into the next decade since future mothers have already been born.

Second, the survey provides regional information on basic demographic characteristics of households between census takings. The published reports provide regional information on household size, sex of household head, levels of educational attainment, school attendance, and access to mass media. Information on the role and status of women including labor force participation, form of earnings, and occupation is also included. Planners may observe the age and sex distributions of regions to plan for different segments of the population. Changes in housing quality, especially in countries where several surveys have been administered, may also be evaluated. The survey collects information on the availability of electricity, source of drinking water, available sanitation facilities, materials used for building construction, persons per sleeping room, and mean persons per room.

National statistics offices in most countries administer the Demographic and Health Survey. Survey reports and data sets are available for Sub-Saharan African countries, Asian countries, Latin American and Caribbean countries, and European/Eurasia countries. In some countries two to four rounds of the survey have been administered over the past 15 years. It is possible to analyze several surveys for a given country to observe changes over time.

Acquiring DHS Information and Data

The published reports are available at low costs through most central statistics offices and/or the Ministry of Health. The reports can also be ordered through the web site of the Demographic and Health Surveys. Survey data sets can also be downloaded free at the  DHS web site  along with instructions on how to place the data set on your local computer.

Vital Registration or Civil Registration System

Mortality statistics are used in population projections to calculate the probability of surviving into a future period of time. Information on the cause of death is also used to develop and implement plans that protect the health of communities. Planners are concerned about environmental factors that affect the health of residents including the quality of water, sewage systems, living quarters, roads, public transportation, and work environments. Information on births and deaths can be obtained from vital registration systems, sample surveys, church records, and health records.

Who collects information on vital events at the national and sub-national levels?

Studies conducted by the United Nations in 1985 and 1994 provide information on who collects and compiles vital statistics information in developed and developing countries. In most countries, a central statistics office is responsible for the national compilation of vital statistics. The location of national statistics offices varies among countries. In a study conducted in 1994 by the United Nations, it was observed that approximately:

• 29 percent of the statistics offices were located in the Ministry of Finance and Economics
• 26 percent reside within the Ministry of Planning
• 16 percent are in the Ministry of Health
• 11 percent are in the Ministry of the Interior.

The second type of office that compiles vital statistics information is a national civil registration office. Many of these offices are located within Ministries of Finance, Economics, or Planning. Other ministries where central statistics offices and national civil registration offices can be found include the Ministry of Local Government, the Ministry of Home Affairs, and the Office of the President. In some countries several units of government jointly compile vital statistics such as the Ministries of Health and Planning.

Before relying on one particular data source, investigate the ability of the agency to collect accurate and thorough information at the national and sub-national levels including districts and counties. Completeness of registration is fairly high in South American countries including Argentina, Chile, and Colombia where coverage is 90 to 100 percent. A fair number of Asian countries have comprehensive registration systems with 90 to 100 percent coverage including China, Sri Lanka, South Korea and Japan, to name a few. Most European and North American countries also have 90 to 100 percent of vital events registered. Vital registration systems in most Sub-Saharan African countries do not adequately or completely collect information on vital events.

Access to vital statistics at the regional, district, or county level vary by country. In North American countries including the Caribbean, information can be obtained through district or county civil registration offices, court offices, and municipal offices. In South American countries, local vital statistics can be obtained from health centers, civil registration offices and from district registrars. In Asian countries, information can be obtained from municipal offices, birth and death registration offices, local government offices, health centers including the chief medical office, and civil registration offices.

In Sub-Saharan African countries, vital statistics can be obtained from district civil registration offices, the district commissioner's office, health facilities, district courts and in some cases through district representatives. A major problem is that all births and deaths are not reported to a government facility, especially infant deaths. Planners in African countries will need to seek information from a number of sources to determine the number of births and deaths that occur within their planning locale. Additional places to seek information include the Ministry of Health at the state, district, or county level, health care providers within the traditional health care system including traditional birth attendants and herbalists, religious institutions, private health clinics and non-government organizations that provide health care services.

Sample surveys and studies that are conducted by government offices and universities can be used to evaluate the quality of vital statistics. The Ministry of Health or national health department, as well as universities conduct a range of studies on health care status and causes of deaths. The state or province Ministry of Health or health department may be a source of information for government reports. University libraries may be a source for journal articles and books on health care in the country.

Indirect Population Information

Departments or Ministries of Health and Education also collect statistics that indirectly provide information on population growth or decline. State offices and district offices that provide primary and secondary education services collect information on the current number of children enrolled in school. In countries with high levels of fertility, a high proportion of the population under the age of 15, and high rate of school participation, school enrollment statistics for several points in time can be used to determine if population growth is occurring among children ages 0-14. Information on childhood immunizations can also be used to determine growth trends, especially in areas where a high percent of children receive immunizations. Other sources of information that parallel population growth may include new housing construction or the growth of new squatter communities.  

4.6 Summary and Exercise

Population information is needed to guide all planning decisions. Lesson 4 provided sources of available census-related information and various options to evaluate the quality of information obtained. In addition, strategies for using population- related information to develop, revise, implement and evaluate sub-national plans were introduced.

• Think about how you have used population information in the past. What type of information did you obtain? Where did you obtain the information? How did you evaluate its quality?
• Identify additional sources of information. What type of information do you need? How will you use it? Where will you find it? How will you evaluate the quality? 
• Back to the Population Analysis for Planners Home
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• Population Essay

Introduction to Population

Population is a very interesting topic to learn. There is no denying the fact that the population of any country is a very strong indicator of how exactly the country will function in the future and what its capabilities are as a nation. Leaders of the world pay a lot of attention to their country’s population for the same reason. The population and the skills that they possess are perhaps some of the most essential assets for any country. The following article is an essay on the topic of population and has been structured in a way that students of all ages can learn and understand the key points that they need to mention whenever they are writing an essay like this. 

Brief on Population

When we talk about a country’s population, we are talking about a lot of things. We are talking about its future workforce, the people that will build the country as a place to live and grow in, we definitely are talking about the future of the entire country. Taking India’s example, when we talk about the population of the country, we are talking about the future of the dream that our freedom fighters dreamt for us as a nation. Together, the entire population of a country has the potential to change the entire landscape of the kinds of work, and jobs that they do. 

The population of a country is responsible for the economical changes and growth in the country and hence is very important. It is also very important to take care of this population. The population needs the right kind of food, healthy environment to grow in and a great and comfortable lifestyle right from the start. Is that something that is possible for everyone? We all know the answer to this. In a country like India, where income disparities are massive, there is no chance for every single section of the population to have a good lifestyle right from the start that can help them grow as individuals. 

The same applies for other countries as well. Every country has an income disparity among the people that live in it and this is what makes the topic of population so interesting. We already know that it is the biggest asset that any country can have, but every country must plan and strategize well to take care of this population so that every single need is being fulfilled. This not only helps the country flourish as a whole, but also increases its chances of becoming successful in the future. 

Population Explosion

The current population of India is around 140 crores. According to certain reports, in the next few years, there will be a solid growth of population in India, and globally too.

The population is the total number of human beings living in a city or the country. It allows knowing how much resources are required by this population to fulfil and other plans needed. Year by year, there has been an explosion of population, which is making it difficult to provide resources to every person living in the country. Low literacy, early marriage and demand for family growth are some of the reasons behind the explosion of the population.  India is the primary ground of population explosion. It covers 17% of the population of the world and is the most populated country.

Reasons Behind the Growth of the Population

There are many reasons for the growth of the population. The low literacy rate is one of the reasons behind this explosion. For example, in India, the literacy rate is relatively low in many states. Many people living in the village fail to complete education and have less knowledge about birth control. They keep on expanding their family.

Moreover, they do not carry much knowledge about birth control techniques or medication. This lack of understanding further leads to a population explosion.

Another primary reason behind the growth of population is child marriage. The custom of child marriage is still followed in many parts of the country. Parents marry off their daughter at an early age, and at a young age, these girls get pregnant. This process continues for a long time.

One of the reasons behind this growth is there are not strict laws in India, unlike other countries. This also makes it hard for citizens to get an equal share of resources.

Impact of Population Explosion

Population explosion causes harm, not only to citizens of the country, but also nature. Increase in population means the need for more space to live, resulting in deforestation. Many cities have lost the green zone to fill it with urban living. Deforestation is leading to the extinction of species and other resources.  Animals are losing their homes, which makes them encroach on cities taking the lives of people.

Subsequently, an increase in population is also leading to population. More and more people are buying vehicles for their convenience, which is resulting in pollution. Massive traffic, congestion on roads and other negative scenes are witnessed in cities.

Population increase also calls for industrialization, which invites pollution in all areas. A country like India is now witnessing a massive problem of pollution and global warming.

Irregular distribution of food to all populations is another significant impact. Many families in rural areas do not get proper food to eat. Many poor kids go to sleep without eating food. This irregular distribution of food is not the scenario only in India, but other developing countries.

How to Control the Population?

One of the ways to control the population is to educate people about its ill effects on the country's resources. Government, along with NGOs, need to visit every rural area of the country to inform people about population control.

Providing birth control kits, education to kids and monetary benefits to families successful in restricting birth can do the needful.

We, humans, often forget how we are going to suffer if the population keeps exploding. If the number keeps rising, then it will be difficult to survive. Citizens need to understand the negative impact of the population explosion. Taking the right measures and keeping the resources in mind will help to control the population.

FAQs on Population Essay

1. How can the population affect climate change?

A growing population can have a significant impact on climate change. The buildup of human-generated greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is one of the effects of increasing human population. According to one study, there is a deep relationship between population growth and global warming. One child can produce 20 times more greenhouse. Similarly, a child born in the US will add up to 9441 carbon dioxide. This is certainly the most chilling effect of increasing population.

Global warming is the most common fear for today and the coming generation. To stop its growth, controlling the population is essential.

2. How population growth affects the environment?

There is a direct impact of population on the environment. More the population, the more resources are needed. There is a requirement that more space means more deforestation. Population growth also leads to an increase in greenhouse gases, which can affect this planet earth.

Rising sea levels in the coastal region are seen, which eventually leads to flooding. Like these, there are many impacts on the environment due to population growth. In many cities in developing countries, there is a shortage of space. People are not able to find space to live. Moreover, they find it hard to get clean water and are exposed to air pollution and other environmental issues.

3. Will the population increase post-lockdown?

According to the UN report, India will witness a baby boom post-lockdown. The report said, "The pandemic could strain health care capacities for mothers and newborns.” There is an estimate of 116 million babies to be born post-lockdown. The case is not just about India, but China (13.5 million births), Nigeria (6.4 million) and Indonesia (4 million). Post-lockdown, it could be a testing time for developing countries on how the population will affect resources.

4. What are some things that shall be considered while writing an essay on the topic of “Population”?

Whenever you are writing an essay on this topic, make sure that you are highlighting points like how population grows, the impact of this growth, ways to control population and the reasons why population of a country is so important. Once this is done and when you have an idea of what you need to be writing about, start building upon these points. By simply doing this, you will be able to write a brilliant essay. 

Geography Notes

Essay on population in india.

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Read this comprehensive essay to learn about the 1. Definition of Population, 2. Aspects of Population in India, 3. Age and Sex Structure, 4. Sex Ratio in India and Its Determinants, 5. Growth Rate of Population in India, 6. Factors Contributing to the High Growth Rate of Population, 7. Population Projection in India (2001-2026), 8. Population Projection in India by 2050.

India like most countries of the world, has evolved from conditions of high mortality due to famines, accidents, illness, infections, and war and from the time when high levels of fertility was essential for survival of offspring. Over the years, enhancement in areas of diseases prevention, cure and vagaries of nature, and better care for women and infants, it has witnessed significant increase in life expectancy along with a steep fall in mortality.

Essay # 1. Definition of Population:

Population is defined as the total number of individuals of a species in a specific geographical area; can interbreed under natural conditions to produce fertile offsprings and functions as a unit of biotic community.

Similar populations of a species occupying different geographical areas are called sister populations of a species e.g., all the frogs (Rana tigrina), water hyacinth (Eichhornia—an aquatic weed) plants found in a pond and individuals of the common grass, Cyanodon dactylon, in a given area form the populations of frog, water hyacinth and common grass respectively of that pond.

The frogs (Rana tigrina) found in different ponds form the local populations and are sister populations of one another. A local population may be occupying a very-small sized area e.g., a temporary pool of water. Other examples of populations are all the cormorants in a wetland, rats in an abandoned dwelling, teak wood trees in a forest tract, Paramecia in a culture tube, mosquito fish in a pond, etc.

In a geographical area, the population is further divisible into sub-groups called demes. The individuals of a population are capable of interbreeding among themselves. The chances of this sexual communication are more between the members of same deme than between the members of different demes of that population which are further reduced between the members of sister-populations. Due to this mating ability, there is free flow of genes in a species.

Essay # 2. Aspects of Population in India:

Size and Growth:

The current population of India is 1,342,528,871 (1.34 billion) people and it is the second most populous country in the world, while China is on the top with over 1,415,489,506 (1.41 billion) people. Out of the world’s 7 billion people, India represents almost 17.85% of the world’s population. It is predicted that India will beat China to become the highest populous country by 2030. With the population growth rate at 1.2%, India is predicted to have more than 1.53 billion people by the end of 2030.

More than 50% of India’s current population is below the age of 25 and over 65% below the age of 35. About 72.2% of the population lives in some 638,000 villages and the rest 27.8% in about 5,480 towns and urban agglomerations. The birth rate (child births per 1,000 people per year) is 22.22 births/1,000 population while death rate (deaths per 1000 individuals per year) is 6.4 deaths/1,000 population. Fertility rate is 2.72 children born/woman and infant mortality rate is 30.15 deaths/1,000 live births.

India has the largest illiterate population in the world. The literacy rate of India as per 2011 Population Census is 74.04%, with male literacy rate at 82.14% and female at 65.46%. Kerala has the highest literacy rate at 93.9%, Lakshadweep (92.3%) is on the second position, and Mizoram (91.6%) is on third. The population of a state like Uttar Pradesh is almost equal to the population of Brazil. It has, as per 2001 Population Census of India, 190 million people and the growth rate is 16.16%. The population of the second most populous state Maharashtra, which has a growth rate of 9.42%, is equal to that of Mexico’s population.

Bihar, with 8.07%, is the third most populous state in India and its population is more than Germany’s. West Bengal with 7.79% growth rate, Andhra Pradesh (7.41%), and Tamil Nadu (6.07%) are at fourth, fifth, and sixth positions respectively. The sex ratio of India stands at 940. Kerala with 1058 females per 1000 males is the state with the highest female sex ratio. Pondicherry (1001) is second, while Chhattisgarh (990) and Tamil Nadu (986) are at third and fourth places respectively. Haryana with 861 has the lowest female sex ratio.

Determinants of Population Change:

The main causes which are generally identified for the high population in India are listed here:

(a) The Birth Rate is still Higher than the Death Rate:

India has been successful in declining the death rate. On the other hand, it has not been able to control the high birth rates. The fertility rate due to the population policies and other measures has been falling, still it is much higher compared to other countries. Various social causes are at the root of overpopulation in India.

(b) Early Marriage and Universal Marriage System:

Though legally the marriageable age of a girl is 18 years, the concept of early marriage still prevails and getting married at a young age prolongs the child bearing age. Also, in India, marriage and child bearing are sacrosanct obligations and a universal practice, and almost every woman is married at the reproductive age.

(c) Poverty and Illiteracy:

Underprivileged families have a presumption that more the number of members in the family, more will be the hands to earn income. Some feel that more children are needed to look after them in their old age. Also, malnutrition can be the cause of death of their children and hence the need for more children. Many parts of India still lag behind the use of contraceptives and birth control methods. Many of them are not willing to discuss or are totally unaware about them.

(d) Age Old Cultural Norm:

Sons are believed to be the bread earners, the carriers of lineage, and the source of salvation for their parents. Many families give birth to multiple children in the hope of a male child.

(e) Illegal Migration:

Finally, the fact that illegal migration is continuously taking place from lesser developed neighbouring countries is leading to increased population density.

Implications of the Size and Growth of Population:

The impact of overpopulation is varied and has far reaching consequences in many areas of life.

Ecological Consequences:

Overpopulation causes massive ecological damage by the wasteful, unnecessary, and unbalanced consumption and exploitation of nature. The review on “Promotion of Sustainable Development- Challenges for Environmental Policies” in the Economic Survey 1998-99 had covered in detail the major environmental problems and policy options for improvement.

According to this review, in many developing countries, continued population growth has resulted in pressure on land, fragmentation of land holding, collapsing fisheries, shrinking forests, rising temperatures, and loss of plant and animal species. Global warming due to increasing use of fossil fuels (mainly by the developed countries) could have serious effects on the populous coastal regions in developing countries, their food production, and essential water supplies.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has projected that, if current greenhouse gas emission trends continue, the mean global surface temperature will rise from 1 to 3.5 degrees Celsius in the next century. The panel’s best estimate scenario projects a sea- level rise of 15 to 95 cms by 2100. The ecological impact of rising oceans would include increased flooding, coastal erosion, salination of aquifers, and coastal crop land and displacement of millions of people living near the coast. Patterns of precipitation are also likely to change, which combined with increased average temperatures, could substantially alter the relative agricultural productivity of different regions. Greenhouse gas emissions are closely linked to both population growth and development. Slower population growth in developing countries and ecologically sustainable lifestyles in developed countries would make reduction in greenhouse gas emission easier to achieve and provide more time and options for adaptation to climate change. Rapid population growth, developmental activities either to meet the growing population or the growing needs of the population, as well as changing lifestyles and consumption patterns pose major challenge to preservation and promotion of ecological balance in India.

Some of the major ecological adverse effects reported in India include:

1. Severe pressure on the forests, due to both the rate and the nature of resources used. The per capita forest biomass in the country is only about 6 tons as against the global average of 82 tons.

2. Adverse effect on species diversity.

3. Conversion of habitat to land use such as agriculture, urban development, and forestry operation. Some 70-80% of fresh water marshes and lakes in the Gangetic flood plains have been lost in the last 50 years.

4. Tropical deforestation and destruction of mangroves for commercial needs and fuel wood. The country’s mangrove areas have reduced from 700,000 ha to 453,000 ha in the last 50 years.

5. Intense grazing by domestic livestock.

6. Poaching and illegal harvesting of wildlife.

7. Increase in agricultural area, high use of chemical fertilizers pesticides and weedicides, water stagnation, soil erosion, soil salinity, and low productivity.

8. High level of biomass burning causing large-scale indoor pollution.

9. Encroachment on habitat for rail and road construction, thereby fragmenting the habitat.

10. Increase in commercial activities such as mining and unsustainable resource extraction.

11. Degradation of coastal and other aquatic ecosystems from domestic sewage, pesticides, fertilizers, and industrial effluents.

12. Over fishing in water bodies and introduction of weeds and exotic species.

13. Diversion of water for domestic, industrial, and agricultural uses leading to increased river pollution and decrease in self-cleaning properties of rivers.

14. Increasing water requirement leading to tapping deeper aquifers which have high content of arsenic or fluoride resulting in health problems.

15. Disturbance from increased recreational activity and tourism causing pollution of natural ecosystems with wastes left behind by people.

Urbanisation:

The proportion of people in developing countries who live in cities has almost doubled since 1960 (from less than 22% to more than 40%), while in more developed regions the urban share has grown from 61% to 76%. Urbanisation is projected to continue well into the next century. By 2030, it is expected that nearly 5 billion (61%) of the world’s 8.1 billion people will live in cities. India is also a part of this global trend.

India’s urban population has doubled from 109 million to 218 million during the last two decades. As a consequence, cities are facing the problem of expanding urban slums. Cities and towns have become the location of social change and rapid economic development. Urbanisation is associated with improved access to education, employment, and health care; these result in increase in age at marriage, reduction in family size, and improvement in health indices.

As people have moved towards and into cities, information has flowed outward. Better communication and transportation now link urban and rural areas both economically and socially creating an urban-rural continuum of communities with improvement in some aspects of lifestyle of both. The ever increasing reach of mass media has made information readily available. This phenomenon has affected health care, including reproductive health, in many ways.

For instance, radio and television programmes that discuss gender equity, family size preference, and family planning options are now reaching formerly isolated rural populations. This can create awareness for services for mothers and children, higher contraceptive use, fewer unwanted pregnancies, smaller healthier families, and lead to more rapid population stabilisation.

However, the rapid growth of urban population also poses some serious challenges. Urban population growth has outpaced the development of basic minimum services— housing, water supply, sewerage, and solid waste disposal; increasing waste generation at home, offices, and industries, coupled with poor waste disposal facilities result in rapid environmental deterioration. Increasing automobiles add to air pollution. All these have adverse effect on ecology and health. Poverty persists in urban and peri-urban areas; awareness about the glaring inequities in close urban setting may lead to social unrest.

Rural Population and Their Development:

Over 70% of India’s population still lives in rural areas. There are substantial differences between the states in the proportion of rural and urban population (varying from almost 90% in Assam and Bihar to 61% in Maharashtra). Agriculture is the largest and one of the most important sectors of the rural economy and contributes both to economic growth and employment.

Its contribution to the Gross Domestic Product has declined over the last five decades but agriculture still remains the source of livelihood for over 70% of the country’s population. A large proportion of the rural workforce is small and consists of marginal farmers and landless agricultural labourers. There is substantial under employment among these people; both wages and productivity are low. These in turn result in poverty; it is estimated that 320 million people are still living below the poverty line in rural India.

Though poverty has declined over the last three decades, the number of rural poor has in fact increased due to the population growth. Poor tend to have larger families which puts enormous burden on their meagre resources, and prevent them from breaking out of the shackles of poverty. In States like Tamil Nadu where replacement level of fertility has been attained, population growth rates are much lower than in many other States; but the population density is high and so there is a pressure on land.

In States like Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Madhya Pradesh, population is growing rapidly, resulting in increasing pressure on land and resulting in land fragmentation. Low productivity of small land holders leads to poverty, low energy intake, and under nutrition, and this, in turn, prevents the development, thus, creating a vicious circle. In most of the states, non-farm employment in rural areas has not grown very much and cannot absorb the growing labour force. Those who are getting educated specially beyond the primary level, may not wish to do manual agricultural work.

They would like better opportunities and more remunerative employment. In this context, it is imperative that programmes for skill development, vocational training, and technical education are taken up on a large scale in order to generate productive employment in rural areas. The entire gamut of existing poverty alleviation and employment generation programmes may have to be restructured to meet the newly emerging types of demand for employment.

Rural poor have inadequate access to basic minimum services, because of poor connectivity, lack of awareness, and inadequate and poorly functional infrastructure. There are ongoing efforts to improve these, but with the growing aspirations of the younger, educated population, these efforts may prove to be inadequate to meet the increasing needs both in terms of type and quality of services.

Greater education, awareness, and better standard of living among the growing younger age group population would create the required consciousness among them that smaller families are desirable; if all the felt needs for health and family welfare services are fully met, it will be possible to enable them to attain their reproductive goals, achieve substantial decline in the family size, and improve quality of life.

Water Supply:

In many parts of developed and developing world, water demand substantially exceeds sustainable water supply. It is estimated that currently 430 millions (8% of the global population) are living in countries affected by water stress; by 2020, about one-fourth of the global population may be facing chronic and recurring shortage of fresh water.

In India, water withdrawal is estimated to be twice the rate of aquifer recharge; as a result water tables are falling by one to three meters every year; tapping deeper aquifers have resulted in larger population groups being exposed to newer health hazards such as high fluoride or arsenic content in drinking water. At the other end of the spectrum, excessive use of water has led to water logging and increasing salinity in some parts of the country.

Eventually, both lack of water and water logging could have adverse impact on India’s food production. There is very little arable agricultural land which remains unexploited and in many areas, agricultural technology improvement may not be able to ensure further increase in yield per hectare. It is, therefore, imperative that research in biotechnology for improving development of food grain strains that would tolerate salinity and those which would require less water gets high priority.

Simultaneously, a movement towards making water harvesting, storage, and its need based use part of every citizens life should be taken up.

Food Security:

Technological innovations in agriculture and increase in area under cultivation have ensured that so far, food production has kept pace with the population growth. Evolution of global and national food security systems has improved access to food. It is estimated that the global population will grow to 9 billion by 2050 and the food production will double; improvement in purchasing power and changing dietary habits (shift to animal products) may further add to the requirement of food grains.

Thus, in the next five decades, the food and nutrition security could become critical in many parts of the world, especially in the developing countries and pockets of poverty in the developed countries.

Levels and Trends of Fertility in India:

Recent data suggest a clear decline in fertility throughout the country, including in the large north Indian states (Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan), where since 1971, TFR has declined by 27-28%. Elsewhere, fertility decline has been faster. Compared to rural fertility, urban fertility has declined at a faster pace. The urban TFR has dropped to 2.1 or to a replacement level or less in urban areas of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, and West Bengal.

However, we need to be concerned not just with the level of fertility but with the total size of the population or its annual growth. Therefore, we can take little comfort from the observed decline in the TFR, and must recognize the fact that the annual increase in the total population of the country is likely to exceed about 18 million, higher than in China and equal to the total population of several countries.

However, if the success of the family planning programme is neutralised by the success of the health policies, it is certainly not fair to label the former as a failure. The results of knowledge, attitudes, and practice (KAP) surveys indicating a widespread desire to regulate the size of the family induced an excessive faith in what the supply of services by female health workers or the auxiliary nurse midwives (ANMs) might achieve.

Levels and Trends of Mortality in India:

The infant mortality rate (IMR) of around 200-225 per 1000 live-births at the time of India’s independence in 1947 has declined to about 40 per 1000 births today. Admittedly, even this figure far exceeds the IMR in China, which has now declined to around 30. Within India, only Kerala, with about 93% of births occurring in institutions and another 6% attended by trained birth attendants, has achieved an even lower IMR of 17.

Elsewhere, the IMR ranges between low 50s in Punjab, Tamil Nadu, and Maharashtra, and high values between 85 and 98 in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Orissa. Obviously, there is substantial scope and need for a further decline in the present high IMR.

The interstate differentials are evident in life expectancy as well, which in India has risen from about 32 years in the 1940s to nearly 66, 21 years during 2012. The figure for Kerala exceeded 73 years, and Punjab was second with 67 years, whereas Assam and Madhya Pradesh reported nearly 18 years lower than Kerala’s life expectancy.

The slow mortality decline may partly be attributed to the fact that the universal programme of immunisation was initiated only in the mid-1970s. It now covers the entire country but even during 1995-96, 33% of the rural children aged 0-4 had not received BCG and 56 and 45% of the rural children had not received oral polio vaccine and the DPT doses.

There has been some controversy in India that the programme has led to a certain imbalance in the allocation of funds. Critics argue that as a result, the much-needed effort to eliminate malnutrition and to minimise the number and proportion of low birth-weight babies has not received the requisite attention.

Implications of the Levels of Mortality:

There is no doubt that a reduction in the level of infant, child, and maternal mortality and an improvement in the availability of prenatal, natal, and postnatal care would help to lower the ‘high wanted fertility’ or the number of living children desired by couples. Unfortunately, the rural infrastructure is so weak that even today only about 30% of all villages had an all-weather approach road.

The possible efforts of pregnant women to access the health care system to meet crisis situations are frustrated by the inadequacies of road transport and communication, which also discourages the teachers of rural schools to attend to their duties. According to the 1991 Census, 65% of Indian villages had a population of less than 1000 persons and 42 had less than 500 persons each.

The average population of a village in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, the two states with a below replacement level of fertility, was 15476 and 2325, much higher than the national average of 1061. The size class of population of a village is an excellent indicator of the size of the rural market, the extent of diversification of economic activities of the population, and also the level of development. The road network integrates villages into the mainstream of the economy and increases the options to access social and economic opportunities and services in the rest of the country.

According to the broad experience of the fertility transition that has occurred in developed countries as well as in the newly industrialised economies of Southeast and East Asia, it is modernisation or westernisation that helps to lower the traditionally high levels of fertility. The process includes high levels (exceeding 75%) of literacy, urbanisation, and industrialisation, and a rise in the status of women. Some recent reviews of the subject have added to these variables the spread of communications and transport as key factors influencing fertility decline.

Implications of the Levels of Fertility:

In an analysis of change in the level of fertility between 1970-72 and 1989-91, the various socio-economic variables (female literacy, urbanisation, infant mortality, percentage of male workers engaged in non-farm activities) in the 16 major states showed no statistically significant association, except for female literacy. However, the values for Kerala seem to contribute a great deal to the association.

Otherwise, one essentially observes two clusters of states. One of the clusters includes the four large North Indian states (Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh) with both a high TFR and low female literacy and the second cluster having moderate levels of both TFR and female literacy.

The sharp decline in the level of fertility in Tamil Nadu without anything like the high level of literacy and low levels of infant and child mortality observed in Kerala, attests to the difficulty of identifying preconditions for fertility decline. Fertility has declined by more than 50% and reached almost three-fourths of the way towards a replacement level of fertility in at least three districts of Gujarat state where the IMR continues to be high and female literacy rates are much lower than even in Tamil Nadu.

These findings do not imply that universal literacy and low infant and child mortality are not worthwhile goals for a society to pursue or that societies can divert resources from the pursuit of these objectives to other issues. They do confirm, however, that it is difficult or impossible to specify the threshold levels of progress in social goals or modernisation that would usher in a sharp fertility decline.

In several discussions, Kerala’s experience is cited as a model to suggest that universal female literacy, low infant mortality, and a high status of women, summarised as social development, would help to accelerate fertility transition. However, the important role of international migration to the Gulf countries as a means of escaping the poverty trap and the associated rise in the aspirations of living desired for the family and the children is often underestimated.

Likewise, the history of matriarchal tradition in Kerala is often cited as indicating the high status enjoyed by Kerala women. However, the evidence on the subject is by no means clear. The key word at the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) at Cairo was empowerment of women. However, the concept of empowerment is difficult to translate. The NPP 2000 has stressed the need for ending discrimination against girls during childhood and early adolescence and against women during the childbearing period in order to improve their health and nutrition. Legal action is certainly not enough. Many laws enacted by our progressive legislatures continue to be violated with impunity in large parts of India.

Determinants of Declining Mortality:

The main reasons responsible for the decline in mortality rate are as under:

1. Decline in Epidemics:

In India, systematic efforts are being made to reduce the incidence of epidemics like plague, malaria, etc.

2. Urbanisation of Population:

Majority of population has migrated to towns. In 2011 Census, about 31% of the total population was in towns as compared to 28% in 1991. Moreover, development of medical and sanitary conditions has also reduced the death rate.

3. Late Marriages:

The late marriages have been encouraged in the country. Laws regarding marriages have been vigorously enforced.

4. More Medical Facilities:

Medical facilities in the country are going on to develop rapidly.

5. Spread of Education:

The literacy ratio in the country has been increasing at an equal interval. People have more resources and better facilities to nourish their children.

6. Change in Habits:

Habits of the people are also changing. Now they have more care for their health which has led to a decline in death rate.

7. Decline in Social Evils:

In India, various social evils like caste system, superstition, etc. are steadily being rooted out. This has also led to the decline in the death rate.

8. Balanced Diet:

People are getting better and balanced diet.

Essay # 3. Age and Sex Structure:

Currently, nearly half of the global population is below 25 years of age and one sixth is in the age group 15-24. In developed countries the reproductive age group population is relatively small; their fertility is low and the longevity at birth is high. Population profiles of these countries resemble a cylinder and not a pyramid. These countries have the advantages of having achieved a stable population but have to face the problems of having a relatively small productive workforce to support the large aged population with substantial non-communicable disease burden.

Some of the developing countries have undergone a very rapid decline in the birth rates within a short period. This enabled them to quickly achieve population stabilisation but they do face the problems of rapid changes in the age structure and workforce which may be inadequate to meet their manpower requirements. In contrast, the population in most of the developing countries, including India, consist of a very large proportion of children and persons in the reproductive age.

Because of the large reproductive age group (Population momentum) the population will continue to grow even when replacement level of fertility is reached (couples having only two children). Age statistics form an important component of population analysis, as most of the analysis is based on age-sex structure of the population.

The usefulness of age data is more noticeable when it is cross classified by variables like marital status, literacy, educational attainment, and economic activity which vary with age in different patterns. Apart from purely demographic concerns, the age-sex data structure is required for age specific analysis of data for planning, scientific, technical, and commercial purposes.

The dependency ratio, which is the ratio of economically active to economically inactive persons, is dependent on age composition. India has one of the largest proportions of population in the younger age groups in the world. 31.2% of the population of the country has been in the age group 0-14 years. Census 2001 data on marital status of persons show that out of over a billion population of the country, 513 million (49.8%) have reported as ‘Never married’, mainly due to high proportion of young people. The ‘Married’ constitute about 45.6% of the total population.

Essay # 4. Sex Ratio in India and Its Determinants:

The sex ratio of India has shown improvement during last two decades. Sex ratio, as per the recent Census is 940 which is largely comparable to the best performance (941 in 1961) in last fifty years. Several steps, including gender equality awareness campaigns were taken by the government to arrest the trend of declining sex ratio.

State Wise Comparison with All India Averages:

The lowest sex ratio among the States has been recorded in Haryana (877), Jammu & Kashmir (883), and Sikkim (889). Among the UTs, the lowest sex ratio has been returned in Daman & Diu (618), Dadra & Nagar Haveli (775), and Chandigarh (818). Among the major States, Bihar, Jammu & Kashmir, and Gujarat have experienced a fall in the sex ratio. The decline ranged from 2 points in Gujarat to 9 points in Jammu & Kashmir.

Other smaller Union Territories showing steep decline are Dadra & Nagar Haveli (37 points) and Daman and Diu (92 points). Perceptible increase has been observed in the major states such as Uttar Pradesh. It is interesting to note that states having historically low sex ratio such as Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, and Chandigarh have shown appreciable increase in the sex ratio in Census 2011 with Chandigarh and Delhi showing an improvement of more than 40 points compared to 2001.

Majority of the states identified as gender critical for special attention and intervention as part of the Census 2011 have shown increasing trend in the sex ratio as per the provisional results.

Essay # 5. Growth Rate of Population in India:

1. Growth during 1891 to 1921 :

The growth of population in India can be properly studied in three distinct phases. During the first phase of 30 years, i.e., from 1891 to 1921, the size of population in India increased from 23.6 crore to 25.1 crore, i.e., by 1.5 crore, showing the annual compound growth rate of only 0.19 per cent per annum. But the average annual growth rate of population gradually increased from 0.30 per cent in 1901 to 0.50 percent in 1911 and then attained a negative growth rate of -0.03 per cent in 1921.

2. Growth during 1921-51 :

During the second phase of 30 years, i.e., from 1921 to 1951, India’s population increased from 25.1 crore to 36.1 crore, i.e., by 11 crore and the annual compound growth rate during this second phase was 1.22 per cent. But the annual average growth rate of population in India gradually increased from 1.06 per cent in 1931 to 1.34 per cent in 1941 and then slightly declined to 1.26 per cent in 1951.

3. Growth during 1951-81:

During the third phase of 30 years, i.e., from 1951-1981, the size of population in India increased from 36.1 crore in 1951 to 68.3 crore in 1981, i.e., by 32.4 crore and the annual compound growth rate during the period was 2.15 per cent. Besides, the annual average growth rate of population in India increased from 1.98 per cent in 1961 to 2.20 per cent in 1971 and then to 2.25 per cent in 1981.

4. Growth during 1981-2011 :

Again as per 1991 census report, the total size of population in India increased to 84.4 crore in 1991 showing an annual average growth rate of 2.11 per cent which is slightly less than the previous decade. The decadal growth rate of population which was 24.7 per cent in during 1971-81 and then finally declined slightly to 24.8 per cent during 1981-91.

As per provisional census figure of 2001, the total population of India as on 1st March, 2001 stood at 102.70 crore. The decadal growth rate of population which was 23,8 per cent during 1981-91, gradually declined to 21.34 per cent in 1991-2001, showing a decadal increase of population to the extent of 18.3 crore. The annual average growth rate of population in India during 1991-2001 stood at 1.93 per cent.

As per provisional population totals of census 2011 the total population of India as on 1st March 2011 Stood at 121.07 crore. The decadal growth rate of population which was 21.34 per cent during 1991-2001, gradually declined to 17.70 per cent during 2001-2011, showing a decadal increase of population to the extent of 18.19 crore.

Thus as it was expected, that the rate of growth of population in India would decline significantly in response to country’s family planning programme. But it has not come true. At present India is passing through the second stage of demographic transition and thus facing a serious ‘population explosion’.

This population explosion itself reflects the cause and consequences of underdevelopment character of the economy. Thus although India experienced a sharp fall in the death rate due to its substantial expansion of hospital and medical facilities but the rate of growth of population in the country remained still high mainly due to its high birth rate.

Table 6.1 reveals that in 1891, total population of India was 23.6 crore and then it subsequently increased to 25.1 crore in 1921, 36.1 crore in 1951, 54.8 crore in 1971, 68.3 crore in 1981 and then to 84.4 crore in 1991. The size of population on 1st March 2001 was 102.7 crore and then it further increased to 121.07 crore in 2011.

Essay # 6. Factors Contributing to the High Growth Rate of Population:

Biological Factors:

1. Sharp Fall in Death Rate:

In India the death rate has fallen sharply during the first half of the twentieth century, i.e., from 42.6 per thousand in 1901-11 to 12.8 per thousand in 1951-61. Various factors are responsible for this sharp fall in death rate. Kingsley Davis mentioned that, “The causes of decline in Indian mortality are harder to establish than the fact itself.”

However, the factors which have largely contributed to this sharp fall in the death rate include removal of famines leading to eradication of starvation death, control of epidemics arising through cholera and small pox, decline in the incidence of malaria and tuberculosis and some other factors like improvement of public health measures like drinking water supply, improved hygienic and sanitation facilities and the improvement of medical and hospital facilities.

Thus all these factors had led to sudden and phenomenal fall in the death rate in recent years, i.e., to 7.0 per thousand in 2013 and this is considered as the most important factor for this high rate of growth of population in India.

2. No Substantial Fall in the Birth Rate:

During the first half of the present century, the birth rate in India did not fall substantially. The birth rate in India declined marginally for 49.2 per thousand in 1901-11 to 41.7 in 1951-61 and then to 21.8 per thousand in 2011.

Due to this maintenance of birth rate to a very high level, the rate of growth of population in India remained all along high. Moreover, due to tropical climate, puberty of women in India starts at an early age leading to a large number of births.

3. Accelerating Natural Growth Rate:

The most important factor which is responsible for the high rate of growth of population is its accelerating natural growth rate. This has resulted from the wide gap between the birth rate and death rate of population in India. The factor which is again responsible for this wide gap is the sudden and phenomenal fall in the death rate no substantial fall in the birth rate.

Due to remarkable advance in medical sciences along with the improvement and expansion of public health and medical facilities, the death rate in India has come down from 27.4 per thousand in 1951 to above 9.0 per thousand in 1996.

But the birth rate of Indian population still remained as high as 27.4 per thousand in 1996. All these had led to a severe increase in the natural growth rate of population from 12.5 per thousand in 1951 to 25.3 per thousand in 1971 and then slightly declined to 14.7 per thousand in 2011.

Social Factors:

1. Universality of Marriage:

Marriage is almost universal in India as it is a religious and social necessity of the country. Parents feel that it is their social obligation to arrange marriages for the daughters. Thus presently in India, about 76 per cent of women of their reproductive age are married and by attaining the age of 50 only 5 out of 1,000 Indian women remain unmarried. Hence, this has resulted a very high birth rate.

2. Practice of Early Marriage:

Practice of early marriage is very much common in various parts of the country and the average age of marriage is still around 18 years. Between the ages of 15 to 20 years, more than 8 out of every 10 girls got married in India. Thus the practice of empty marriage raises the span of reproductively. Some reduction of fertility would be possible if the average age of marriage of Indian women can be raised to 25 or more.

3. Illiteracy:

In India, illiteracy is widespread as a significant portion of Indian population and women in particular are still illiterate. The literacy rate among the women in India is only 65.4 per cent as against 82.1 per cent among men and the incidence of female illiteracy is comparatively much higher in backward states.

It has been observed by most of the economists that spread of education alone can change the attitudes of the people towards marriages, family, birth of a child etc. and help the people to shed irrational ideas and religious superstitions.

There is an inverse correlation between the spread of education and fertility. The findings of the Operations Research Group Survey show that birth rates in general are lower and adoption of family planning norms become more popular in those states where education is more widespread.

Further, due to lack of education, the response of rural population in respect of adoption of family planning norms and use of contraceptives are not at all encouraging.

4. Religious and Social Attitudes:

Religious and social attitudes of the Indian people induce to prefer large families. The idea to have sons and daughters for performing religious rites and to earn religious merit is still very much common in Indian society.

As Mamdani observed, “Marriage vows and blessing put emphasis on the good fortune of having many children………………. Sanctions against childless women further underline the necessity of children.” Moreover, social attitudes towards unmarried men and women and childless couple are not very encouraging. Further, the existence of joint family system induces thoughtlessness about the number of children.

5. Ignorance and Lack of Conscious Family Planning:

People of India are very much ignorant about the biology of reproduction, need for birth control and devices of birth control. In India, there is also lack of conscious family planning along-with lack of birth control devices, more particularly in the rural areas. That is why the Family Planning Programme in India could not do much headway in reducing the birth rate.

6. Other Factors:

Various other factors, viz., tropical climate, existence of polygamy, higher widow remarriages etc. are responsible for this high rate of growth of population in India. Moreover, growing immigration of population from the neighbouring countries like Bangladesh, Nepal etc. is also raising the growth rate of population in India to a considerable extent.

This problem of immigration is very much acute in Assam and north-eastern states, West Bengal and Bihar. This has been creating the problem of influx of population within the country besides raising a threat towards national security.

Essay # 7. Population Projection for India (2001-2026):

Population projection is a scientific attempt to peep into the future population scenario, conditioned by making certain assumptions, using data relating to the past available at that point of time. Assumptions used and their probability of adhering in future, forms a critical input in this mathematical effort.

Predicting the future course of human fertility and mortality is not easy, especially when looking beyond in time as medical and health intervention strategies, food production and its equitable availability, climatic variability, sociocultural setting, politico economic conditions, and a host of other factors influence population dynamics, making it difficult to predict the growth with certainty. Therefore, caution must be exercised while making or using the population projections in the context of various conditions imposed.

The Component Method is the universally accepted method of making population projections because growth of population is determined by fertility, mortality, and migration rates. Twenty-one States have been considered and applied the Component method. They are Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttaranchal, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal.

pThe projection of the seven north-eastern states (excluding Assam) has also been carried out as a whole. For the State of Goa and six Union territories, Mathematical Method has been applied. The data used are 2001 Census and Sample Registration System (SRS). SRS provides time series data of fertility and mortality, which has been used for predicting their future levels.

Critical Demographic Issues:

The salient features of the population projections at the national level, and some of the underlying assumptions in this regard, are as under:

1. The population of India is expected to increase from 1029 million to 1400 million during the period 2001-2026—an increase of 36% in twenty- five years at the rate of 1.2% annually. As a consequence, the density of population will increase from 313 to 426 persons per square kilometer.

2. The crude birth rate will decline from 23.2 during 2001-05 to 16.0 during 2021-25 because of falling level of total fertility. In contrast, the crude death rate is expected to fall marginally due to changing age structure of the population with the rising median age as a result of continuing decline in fertility and increase in the expectation of life at birth. It will drop from 7.5 during 2001-05 to 7.2 during 2021-25.

3. The infant mortality rate of the country, which is reported to be 63 in 2002, is expected to go down to 40 by the end of the period 2021-25.

4. Between 2001 and 2026, because of the declining fertility, the proportion of population aged under 15 years is projected to decline from 35.4 to 23.4%; the proportion of the middle (15-59 years) and the older ages (60 years and above) are set to increase considerably.

With the declining fertility, along with the increases in life expectancy, the number of older persons in the population is expected to increase by more than double from 71 million in 2001 to 173 million in 2026—an increase in their share to the total population from 6.9 to 12.4%. The proportion of population in the working age group 15-59 years is expected to rise from 57.7% in 2001 to 64.3% in 2026.

5. Another important consequence of the declining fertility will be that, at the national level, the population in the school-going age of 5-14 years is expected to decline from 243 million in 2001 to 222 million in 2026. The share of the population aged 5-14 years to total population of all ages is expected to decrease by 5% from 24% in 2001 to 19% in 2011 and by 3% between 2011 to 2026 (19 to 16%).

6. The youth population in the age group 15-24 years is expected to increase from 195 million in 2001 to 224 million in 2026. Its proportion to total population is expected to fall from 19% in 2001 to 16% in 2026.

7. The average Indian will be expected to be of 31 years old in 2026 compared to 23 years old in 2001.

8. Out of the total population increase of 371 million between 2001 and 2026, the share of the workers in the age group 15-59 years in this total increase is 83%. This has implication in the productivity of labour in future.

9. The sex ratio of the total population (females per 1000 males) is expected to decrease (i.e., become less feminine) from 933 in 2001 to 930 during 2026.

10. The Total Fertility Rate (TFR) is expected to decline from 2.9 during 2001-2005 to 2.0 during 2021-25. The assumption is that the Total Fertility Rate (TFR) would decline steadily and would touch the floor value of 1.8 in some states. With this, the weighted TFR is projected to reach the replacement level of 2.1 by the period 2021.

11. The urban population in the country, which is 28% in 2001, is expected to increase to 38% by 2026. The urban growth would account for over two-thirds (67%) of total population increase by 2026. Out of the total population increase of 371 million during 2001-2026 in the country, the share of increase in urban population is expected to be 249 million.

12. The demographic projections suggest that by 2026, the population of India will reach 1,384 million.

State Level Demographic Projections:

Considerable variation in the demographic growth amongst the States has been estimated.

The salient features of the projections at the state level are as under:

1. The State, which is expected to have least growth in the quarter century (2001-2026) is Tamil Nadu (15%), followed by Kerala (17%). In contrast, Delhi will have the highest projected growth of 102% during 2001-2026. States, which will have projected growths in the range of 20-30% are Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, West Bengal, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka.

The population in the states of Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh is projected to increase by 40-50% during 2001-2026, which is above the national average of 36%. The population of Uttar Pradesh is expected to be highest among all the states of the country at almost 249 million in 2026.

2. Of the projected increase in population of 371 million in India during 2001-26,187 million is likely to occur in the seven States of Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttaranchal (termed as BIMARU states, since it was so before division). Thus, nearly 50% of India’s demographic growth during this period of twenty five years, is projected to take place in these seven states. 22 % of the total population increase in India of 371 million during 2001-26 is anticipated to occur in Uttar Pradesh alone.

The population in these seven states together is expected to grow at 1.5% per annum during 2001-26. In contrast, the contribution of the four southern states, namely Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu, to the total increase in population size of the country during 2001-2026 is expected to be 47 million—13% of total demographic growth of the country. The population in these four states together is expected to grow at 0.8% per annum during 2001-26.

3. Continuing decline in fertility and increase in the expectation of life at birth is expected to make a difference to the proportion of older population (60 years and above) between states. The State of Kerala, where lower fertility and mortality rates have been achieved earlier than the other states, the proportion of older persons aged 60 years and above is expected to increase from 11% in 2001 to 18% in 2026.

Thus, almost every sixth individual in Kerala is expected to be a senior citizen by 2026. In contrast, Uttar Pradesh is expected to have an increase of the proportion of old age population from 6% in 2001 to 10% in 2026, implying that the population of Uttar Pradesh will be expected to be relatively younger compared to that of Kerala. The median age of population in Kerala is expected to go up from 28 years in 2001 to 38 years in 2026. In contrast, the median age in Uttar Pradesh is expected to go up from 19 years to 27 years.

4. Because of declining fertility level in all the states, the crude birth rates (CBR) will also be declining. By 2021-25, except Uttar Pradesh, no state is expected to have a crude birth rate of 20 and above. The highest CBR of 20.5 per thousand is expected to be in Uttar Pradesh followed by Madhya Pradesh (18.0) during 2021-25.

Assam, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, and Uttaranchal are expected to have CBRs in the range of 16.5-17.6, close to the projected national level of 16.0. In most of the other states, the CBRs will be in the range 12-15. Kerala will be expected to have the least CBR of 12.3 followed by Tamil Nadu (12.5) during 2021-25.

5. In contrast to the CBRs, the situation is expected to be different in case of crude death rates (CDR). Because of increase in the expected proportion of ageing, in some of the states namely, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Delhi, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and North Eastern Region, the crude death rates are likely to increase during 2021-25.

6. The infant mortality rate (IMR) is expected to decline in all the states during 2001-25. The IMR, which was highest in Orissa in 2002 at 87 is expected to come down to 52 in 2021-25, followed by Madhya Pradesh (51). Other states, where IMRs are expected to be in the range of 40-50 during 2021-25 are Jammu & Kashmir, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Assam, and Andhra Pradesh. The lowest IMR is expected to be in Kerala, from 12 in 2001-05 to 8 during 2021-25. It will be followed by Delhi with IMR declining from 25 in 2001-05 to 18 during 2021-25.

7. In so far, as the projected sex ratio is concerned, it is observed that in some of the northern states, the population is expected to be more masculine, that is, the ratio will decrease in 2026. Lowest sex ratio of 789 is expected to be in Delhi in 2026, followed by 839 and 840 in Haryana and Punjab respectively. In the southern and eastern states except Kerala, the situation would be reverse. In Kerala, where there are excess females than males the trend would remain the same in 2026. Tamil Nadu is the other state, where the number of females is expected to be equal to the number of males in 2026.

Essay # 8. Population Projection in India by 2050 :

United Nation Population Fund (UNFPA) has projected the size of population of India and other countries by 2050 and the figures are released in its report ‘State of World Population 2008’. The report reveals that India whose population is growing by 1.5 per cent, will have 165.8 crore people against China’s 140.8 crore by 2050.

Accordingly, India will become the most populous country overtaking China by 2050.

The total fertility rate in India is 2.78 per cent which it is 1.73 in China where the population of growing by 0.6 per cent. The population of Pakistan will also increase from the current figure of 16.7 crore to 29.2 crore by 2050. The population of Bangladesh will increase from 16.1 crore to 25.4 crore by 2050. However, the population of Sri Lanka would witness negative growth as its present population will decline from 1.94 crore to 1.87 crore by 2050.

Some other Asian countries who are projected to be having negative growth include Japan and Korea. The population and U.S.A will increase from 30.8 crore at present to 40.2 crore by 2050. However, the World population will increase from 647 crore at present to 919 crore by 2050. The major chunk of the population growth will be recorded in less developed countries.

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Essay , Geography , India , Population

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