8 billion humans – A story of hope and stride for equality
The discussions on population revolve around the causes and impact of changes in its size, structure and composition. In India, the interrelated issues of gender are also discussed owing to an imbalance in the child-sex ratio. The early thoughts revolve around an over-populated world, notions around extreme population growth, and advocacy of stringent population control. We tend to imagine ‘certain’ people in ‘some sections of society who have 4-5-6 children as the reason for overpopulation. These could be African countries or disadvantaged Indian populations like rural, poor, Dalits, Adivasis, and Muslims. Against these notions, one needs to reflect on very basic questions viz. a) why do people have babies? b) how many people are too many? and c) Is inequality, high childhood mortality, and lack of social security in old age the causes of high fertility? As the world is poised to reach the landmark of 8 billion people on November 15, 2022, answers to these question...