Child sex ratio falls further, according to provisional census data
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Provisional data from the 2011 census reveals that the numbers are up but the growth rate is down. And the child sex ratio shows fewer female children born or surviving than in the previous decade
India’s population has reached 1.21 billion (121 crore), indicating a rise of 17.64%, or 181 million, in the last 10 years, according to preliminary results of the 15th census released on March 31, 2011. The provisional population report is arrived at by adding the population as reported by each enumerator for the enumeration block assigned to him/her.
The population, comprising 623.7 million males and 586.5 million females, almost equals the combined population of the United States, Indonesia, Brazil, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Japan.
However, the growth rate at 17.64% has dropped in the last decade. This is the first decade (2001-2011), with the exception of 1911-1921, that has actually added less population to the previous decade.
The under-6 child sex ratio in 2011 is 914 females for every 1,000 males, indicating a continuing preference for male children over females. The female sex ratio was more favourable in the last census, at 927. Census Commissioner of India C Chandramauli said this was “a matter of grave concern”.
The child sex ratio in Haryana and Punjab is the lowest among the states. Haryana has 830 female children and Punjab 846, against 1,000 male children. The highest child sex ratio is in Mizoram (971 females against 1,000 males) and Meghalaya (970). Kerala and Puducherry, which had improved their child sex ratios in 2001, have joined the rest of the country in a decline. Jammu and Kashmir has seen the most precipitous drop, 82 points, in its child sex ratio, with Maharashtra registering the next biggest fall among the major states.
The overall sex ratio, which is the proportion of females to every 1,000 males across all ages, has increased from 933 females for every 1,000 males in 2001, to 940 in 2011, indicating that a girl child’s chance at life greatly improves once she crosses the age of 6.
Only three major states have shown a decline in their sex ratio: Jammu and kashmir, Bihar and Gujarat.
Delhi, Haryana and Punjab are the states with the worst overall sex ratios. Kerala (1,084) and Puducherry (1,038) are the only two states or union territories where women outnumber men. A healthy sex ratio remains a largely southern phenomenon -- Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh are among the top five.
Among the states and union territories, Uttar Pradesh is the most populous state with 199 million people and Lakshadweep the least populated at 64,429.
The highest population density is in Delhi’s northeast district (37,346 per sq km); the lowest is in Dibang valley in Arunachal Pradesh (just 1 per sq km).
According to the data, literates constitute 74% of the total population aged 7 and above; illiterates form 26%. The literacy rate has gone up from 64.83% in 2001 to 74.04% in 2011 showing an increase of 9.21%.
While China has 19.4% of the world’s total population, India has 17.5% of the world’s population.
Apart from Uttar Pradesh, the other most populous states are Maharashtra (112.3 million), Bihar (103.8 million), West Bengal (91.3 million), and Andhra Pradesh (84.6 million).
Besides Lakshadweep, the smallest union territories and states are Daman and Diu (242,911), Dadra and Nagar Haveli (342,853), Andaman and Nicobar Islands (779,944), and Sikkim (607,688).
The percentage decadal growth rates of the six most populous states have declined during 2001-2011 compared to 1991-2001: Uttar Pradesh (25.85% to 20.09%), Maharashtra (22.73% to 15.99%), Bihar (28.62% to 25.07%), West Bengal (17.77% to 13.93%), Andhra Pradesh (14.59% to 11.10%), and Madhya Pradesh (24.26% to 20.23%).
“For the first time there is a significant fall in the growth rate of population in the Empowered Action Group (EAG) states after decades of stagnation,” Chandramauli said. The EAG was instituted in March 2001 to prepare area-specific programmes for eight states that lagged behind in containing population growth to manageable limits. The eight states are Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Orissa.
Source: PTI, March 31, 2011
Associated Press, March 31, 2011
www.thehindu.com, March 31, 2011