U.P.’s new population policy

Context:

Uttar Pradesh (UP) unveiled its New Population Policy 2021-30, on the occasion of World Population Day (11th July).

Relevance:

GS-I: Indian Society (Population and Associated Issues), GS-II: Polity and Governance (Government Policies and Interventions, Issues arising out of the design and implementation of policies)

Dimensions of the Article:

1. About U.P.’s New Population Policy
2. What is Two-Child Policy?
3. Criticisms related to two- child policy:
4. Two-Child Policy in Indian States

About U.P.’s New Population Policy

• The U.P. government’s law commission has also prepared a population control bill, under which a two-child norm will be implemented and promoted.
• As per the draft, violation of the policy is penalised with measures such as barring for elections and abidance is rewarded with measures such as promotion in jobs, subsidy etc.
• The new policy aims to
  1. Decrease the Total Fertility Rate
  2. Increase Modern Contraceptive Prevalence Rate
  3. Increase male methods of contraception use
  4. Decrease Maternal Mortality Rate, Infant Mortality Rate and Under 5 Infant Mortality Rate.
• Targeting population stabilization, the draft of the policy also said the state would attempt to maintain a balance of population among the various communities.

What is Two-Child Policy?

• The two-child policy is a state-imposed limit of two children allowed per family or the payment of government subsidies only to the first two children.
• A two-child policy has previously been used in several countries including Iran, Singapore, and Vietnam.
• In British Hong Kong in the 1970s, citizens were also highly encouraged to have two children as a limit (although it was not mandated by law), and it was used as part of the region’s family planning strategies.
• Since 2016, it has been re-implemented in China replacing the country’s previous one-child policy.

Criticisms related to two- child policy:

• Critics argue that the population growth of India will slow down naturally as the country grows richer and becomes more educated.
• There are already well-documented problems with China’s one-child policy, namely the gender imbalance resulting from a strong preference for boys and millions of undocumented children who were born to parents that already had their one child.
• By interfering with the birth rate, India faces a future with severe negative population growth, a serious problem that most developed countries are trying to reverse. With negative population growth, the number of old people receiving social services is larger than the young tax base that is paying for the social services.
• The law related may also be anti-women. Human rights activists argue that the law discriminate against women right from birth (through abortion or infanticide of female fetuses and babies).
• A legal restriction to two children could force couples to go for sex-selective abortions as there are only two ‘attempts’.

Two-Child Policy in Indian States

• Maharashtra: Maharashtra is one of the few states in the country that have a ‘two children’ policy for appointment in government jobs or even for the elections of some local government bodies. The Maharashtra Zilla Parishads And Panchayat Samitis Act disqualifies people who have more than two children from contesting local body elections (gram panchayats to municipal corporations). The Maharashtra Civil Services (Declaration of Small Family) Rules, 2005 states that a person having more than two children is disqualified from holding a post in the state government. Women with more than two children are also not allowed to benefit from the Public Distribution System.
• Rajasthan: For government jobs, candidates who have more than two children are not eligible for appointment. The Rajasthan Panchayati Raj Act 1994 says that if a person has more than two children, he will be disqualified from contesting election as a panch or a member. However, the previous BJP government relaxed the two-child norm in case of a disabled child.
• Madhya Pradesh: The state follows the two-child norm since 2001. Under Madhya Pradesh Civil Services (General Condition of Services) Rules, if the third child was born on or after January 26, 2001, one becomes ineligible for government service. The rule also applies to higher judicial services.
• Telangana and Andhra Pradesh: Under Section 19 (3) read with Sections 156 (2) and 184 (2) of Telangana Panchayat Raj Act, 1994, a person with more than two children shall be disqualified from contesting election. However, if a person had more than two children before May 30, 1994, he or she will not be disqualified.
• Gujarat: In 2005, the government amended the Gujarat Local Authorities Act. The amendment disqualifies anyone with more than two children from contesting elections for bodies of local self-governance — panchayats, municipalities and municipal corporations.
• Uttarakhand: The state government had decided to bar people with more than two children from contesting panchayat elections and had passed a Bill in Vidhan Sabha in this regard. But the decision was challenged in the High Court by those preparing for village pradhan and gram panchayat ward member elections, and they got relief from the court. Hence, the condition of two-child norm was applied to only those who contested the elections of zila panchayat and blocks development committee membership.
• Karnataka: The Karnataka (Gram Swaraj and Panchayat Raj) Act, 1993 does not bar individuals with more than two children from contesting elections to local bodies like the gram panchayat. The law, however, says that a person is ineligible to contest “if he does not have a sanitary latrine for the use of the members of his family”.
• Odisha: The Odisha Zilla Parishad Act bars those individuals with more than two children from contesting.
• Assam: The Assam government announced in 2019 that people who have more than two children will not be eligible for government jobs, with effect from 1 January 2021.

-Source: The Hindu