It is ironic how Sex is a taboo in a country that is the second most populated nation in the world! Take no offense, but if you’ve ever stepped out of your house and approached a mode of transport, be it a car, bus, metro, auto-rickshaw, cycle, or even if you’ve just been on foot, you would have realized the amount of traffic, yes! That is the population of our country and India needs population control Every transport is flooding, the DTC buses are often seen tilting to one side because of an excessive number of passengers on-board.
Ever applied for a UPSC exam or a government college? I have, and what I have always come across is the huge number of applicants for a tiny number of seats or spots. The problem somewhere lies in the Government’s action plan or organisational capacity, but how far can any government accommodate when as I write this article, over 150 new births have already been registered ?
Who is responsible? It’s easy to point fingers at others, but look at your own family, society, social circle, or city, do you see an ounce of family planning ? I hardly see it.
The reason why there are so many unemployed people in our country is also the ever-increasing population density of India. Job-creation and education can not magically accommodate everyone. India is in a crisis, where it is in a dire need to focus upon family planning, effective birth control practices, and responsible citizenry. Adoption and abortion both, should be promoted and normalised.
Food resources, and other natural resources such as minerals, water, oil, natural gas, are also depleting at an alarming rate. The adoption rate in India is abysmal although United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), India has 29.6 million orphaned and abandoned children. A study conducted by SOS Children Village in 2011 concluded that the former category equals 4% of India’s child population. However, Childline India Foundation (CIF) supported by the women and child development ministry showed that in 2017, only 4,70,000 of these 30 million children, were in institutionalised care.
Family planning should be a priority for couples in India. A child deserves healthy conditions to grow and mature. There are various schemes and initiatives by the Indian government, one of the latest is India’s FP2020 goals which aim to drive access, choice, and quality of family planning services. Since first making an FP2020 commitment in 2012, India has continued its efforts to expand the range and reach of contraceptive options through rolling out new contraceptives and delivering a full range of family planning services at all levels. India has integrated family planning into the Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child, and Adolescent Health (RMNCH+A) Strategy. The Government of India has enhanced its supply chain system through rolling out Family Planning Logistics Management Information System (FP-LMIS). Increasing awareness and generating demand for family planning services through comprehensive media campaigns have been priorities. The Government of India has increased domestic investment for family planning. At the 2012 Summit, India committed to spending USD$2 billion by 2020 for family planning program and, in July 2017, India renewed its commitment to invest USD$3 billion by 2020.
Source: http://www.familyplanning2020.org/india
In India, there are many obstacles for women to indulge or have an equal say in family planning, even though it is women who carry a child in their wombs for nine months. Many a time, even after years of education and awareness about equality and empowerment for women, they suffer from family pressure to conceive a child or abort it on the basis of the gender of the foetus.
Mostly, the onus of pregnancy lies on the woman as men are usually said to be indifferent or negligent when it comes to taking contraceptive measures or practising safe sex.
The 2019 World Population Data Sheet revealed that in July 2018, 1,296,834,042 people lived in India. But by 2050, according to the “2017 World Population Data Sheet With Focus on Youth India’s population will increase by 323 million (to 1.67 billion total people), the largest population increase of any country.
Therefore India, as a nation needs to opt for safe sex and contraceptive practices. Brands like Durex India, have a dedicated ad campaign on social media, which educates the masses through quirky, witty yet informative ads. Their advertisements and minimalist infographics highlight the importance of acceptance, sexual preferences, safe sex practices, the importance of sexual pleasure for all genders and most importantly contraception. Have a look,