Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday again urged people to have children, saying families should not view raising them as a burden and warning that a falling population could create serious challenges in the future.
His remarks come against the backdrop of a sharp decline in fertility in Andhra Pradesh. The state’s total fertility rate has fallen to around 1.5, well below the replacement level of 2.1.
Speaking at a rally in Konaseema, Naidu said attitudes towards population growth needed to change as birth rates decline. “People think having children is difficult, but children are our wealth,” he said.
Naidu, whose TDP is part of the BJP-led NDA, acknowledged that he had earlier supported population-control measures when India’s population was rising rapidly.
“In the past, I myself went to control the population when it was increasing. Today, the population is completely decreasing, and many countries have suffered losses. Now I am the one telling you that we need to increase the population,” he said.
He said his changed position reflected the demographic shift taking place in India and several other countries.
“Generally, if you look at history, if one person says something, another person says something else. But changing my opinion and telling you this,” Naidu said, explaining his change in stance.
The Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister said many people were now choosing to have fewer children or not have children at all because they believed raising them was difficult.
“Nowadays, many people are stopping having children. “If there are no children, we will have to serve machines,” he added.
Naidu has previously spoken in favour of encouraging larger families, arguing that population ageing could eventually affect the availability of workers and create economic challenges.
He has also backed incentives for larger families, announcing in May that the Andhra Pradesh government would provide Rs 30,000 for a third child and Rs 40,000 for a fourth.
In March, Minister for Medical and Health and Family Welfare Satya Kumar Yadav highlighted the state’s changing demographic profile. He said Andhra Pradesh was ageing faster than the national average, with a median age of 32.5 years compared with 28 years for India, The New Indian Express reported.
Yadav cautioned that the proportion of children below 14 years could decline from 25 per cent in 2011 to 15 per cent by 2036.
During the same period, the share of people aged 60 and above is projected to nearly double from 10 per cent to 19 per cent, rising further to 23 per cent by 2047, the minister was quoted by The Indian Express as saying.
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