Population Growth and Composition
NCERT Class 9 • Contemporary India I • Chapter "Population" | NCERT Class 12 • India People and Economy • Chapter "Population Composition"
Population Growth and Composition
Population growth is the change in the number of people over time. It has three components: birth rate, death rate and migration. The difference between birth and death rate is the natural increase, and it is the main driver of India's growth, since international migration is small.
Growth and Demographic Transition
- Birth rate is live births per thousand people in a year; death rate is deaths per thousand.
- Natural growth rate equals birth rate minus death rate.
- India's growth was slow until 1921, which is called the demographic divide year because after it the population began rising steadily.
- Death rate fell sharply after independence due to better medicine, control of epidemics and famine relief, while birth rate fell more slowly, so growth accelerated.
- The demographic transition model has three stages: high birth and high death, high birth with falling death, and finally low birth and low death.
- India is in the third stage, with birth rate falling and growth slowing.
Population Composition
- Sex ratio is the number of females per thousand males; India's has long been unfavourable to females, though it has improved.
- Age structure divides people into children below 15, working age 15 to 59, and aged 60 and above.
- The working age group is large in India, which is described as the demographic dividend.
- Dependency ratio compares the dependent groups with the working age group; a lower ratio helps growth.
- Literacy rate counts people aged seven and above who can read and write with understanding; it varies widely by state and by sex.
- Occupational structure shows the share of workers in primary, secondary and tertiary activities; India still has a large primary share.
- Rural and urban composition shows that a majority of Indians still live in villages, though the urban share is rising.
- Health indicators such as life expectancy and infant mortality have improved steadily since independence.
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Birth rate | Live births per thousand per year |
| Death rate | Deaths per thousand per year |
| Sex ratio | Females per thousand males |
| Dependency ratio | Dependents against working age population |
Demographic dividend — the economic advantage a country gains when a large share of its population is of working age.
Exam me kaise aata hai
- Natural growth rate equals — birth rate minus death rate
- Sex ratio is expressed as — females per thousand males
- The year 1921 is called India's — demographic divide
- Literacy is counted from what age — seven years and above
UPSC/State PSC ke liye
- The demographic dividend is only a potential; it turns into growth only if the working age population gets education, skills and jobs.
- A falling death rate with a still high birth rate is exactly the stage that produces the fastest population growth, which is what India passed through after 1947.
Yahan confuse hote hain
✗ Sex ratio means males per thousand females | In India it is females per thousand males | ✓
✗ Population growth in India is mainly due to migration | It is mainly due to natural increase | ✓
✗ Literacy includes all ages | Literacy is counted for age seven and above | ✓
Ek nazar me
- Growth components: birth rate, death rate and migration.
- 1921 is the demographic divide; India is in the third transition stage.
- Composition: sex ratio, age structure, literacy and occupation.
- Large working age share gives a demographic dividend if skilled and employed.