India’s fertility rate now below required level to maintain stable population, says govt report
India’s Total Fertility Rate (TFR) has fallen below the replacement threshold for the first time, according to the Sample Registration System Statistical Report 2024, published by the office of the registrar general and census commissioner under the Union ministry of home affairs. People throng a market place in Mumbai, India. Today, India has a population of 1.45 billion. (AP/File Photo) This means that the total fertility rate, which measures the average number of children a woman is expected to have during her lifetime, is now below the level required to maintain a stable population over time. Is India’s population declining? India had a population of 360 million in 1950, when the average woman gave birth to six children. Today, the country has a population of 1.45 billion. It overtook China in 2023 to become the world’s most populous nation and has continued to grow since then. However, India’s total fertility rate has declined, according to the government report. Notably, the national TFR has moved below the replacement benchmark of 2.1. But what is the replacement …
