Unlike our forefathers, who used to have large families with 6 to 12 children, present generation finds it a burden to raise even 1 or 2
India’s demographic shift over the decades has been dramatic. For a long time, the dominant narrative among policy makers in India has been marked by a concern over a potential population explosion. The exponential growth in population was considered a major strain on resources, infrastructure, public services and, more importantly, on employment. Family planning used to be a flagship programme of successive governments, with an emphasis on incentivising the small family norm, promoting the use of contraceptives and even providing additional increments to government employees.
Over the years, fertility rates in India have declined sharply, while there is significant variation among different States/UTs. Total Fertility Rate (TFR) of 2.1 is considered the measure of replacement level of population or stabilisation of population. As per the latest National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5), India is already below the replacement level, with a TFR of 2.0, comprising a rural fertility rate of 2.1 and that of urban areas being 1.6. There are only five States in India which are above the replacement level of fertility, viz. Bihar (2.98), Meghalaya (2.91), Uttar Pradesh (2.35), Jharkhand (2.26) and Manipur (2.17). The fertility rate in Goa is 1.4, which is the second lowest next to Sikkim (1.1). It is important to note that Goa had achieved the below-replacement level a few decades ago.
As per NFHS-5, the overall contraceptive prevalence rate has increased substantially from 54% to 67%. There has been significant growth in institutional births. Even in rural areas, 87% of births are delivered in institutions, while the same is 94% in urban areas. The report reveals an overall improvement in SDG indicators in all States/UTs. The extent to which married women usually participate in three household decisions (about health care for themselves; making major household purchases; visits to their family or relatives) indicates that their participation in decision-making is high, ranging from 80% in Ladakh to 99% in Nagaland and Mizoram. The rural (77%) and urban (81%) difference is found to be marginal. The prevalence of women having a bank or savings account that they use has increased from 53% to 79% in the last four years.
Increasing levels of literacy, higher participation of women in the workforce, rapid urbanisation, rising cost of living, aspiration for a better quality of life, improved awareness, easy technology-driven access to information and various other reasons have led families to opt for fewer children. The emerging trend reveals more girls pursuing higher education than boys. With the family size being small, gender discrimination by parents has become minimal.
Not long ago, a girl child used to be considered a burden by parents, and therefore female foeticide was often reported due to the desire for a male child. Now, a girl child is slowly turning out to be an asset and pillar of a family. Women’s empowerment in terms of education, employment and self-reliance has led to a reversal in matrimonial preferences, the dowry menace and, most importantly, a decisive say in decision-making. In the marriage domain, the dominance of eligible grooms selecting a bride and demanding dowry has nearly reversed. Today, girls are in a dominant position in deciding their prospective choice by clearly defining preferences in marriage profiles. The desire for higher education, employment and the widening mismatch in preferences among eligible grooms and brides has slowly pushed the age at marriage upwards. It is seen that today boys are finding it difficult to find a suitable girl for marriage, leading to many boys remaining unmarried. On the other hand, girls too, being career-oriented and self-reliant, have become choosy, affording to remain unmarried.
From a traditional notion of marriage, society is slowly moving towards modern relationship concepts like dating, live-in relationships, benching, breadcrumbing, situationships, ghosting, orbiting, cuffing, friends with benefits, hookups, pocketing, haunting, slow fading, love bombing, etc. The barriers of religion, caste, horoscope matching, etc., though still existing, are slowly fading as modern-day youth prefer to find mutual compatibility in their matrimonial choices. Technology has provided wider choices beyond traditional boundaries through various matchmaking platforms. Unlike our forefathers, who used to have large families with 6 to 12 children, the present generation finds it a burden to raise even one or two children. A new syndrome, ‘Double Income No Kids (DINKS)’, is catching up among working couples preferring the ‘Enjoy Your Life (EYL)’ concept.
While having one or two children has nearly become a norm, the emerging trend seems to be a reluctance to have children. The declining fertility rate has arrested population growth. According to the United Nations, nearly two-thirds of the global population now lives in countries where the total fertility rate has fallen below the replacement level of about 2.1 children per woman. Countries like Japan and Italy are already grappling with issues of a shrinking workforce and an ageing population, prompting debates on immigration, retirement age and labour market reforms. A day may not be too far when finding people for employment may become an issue due to a severe mismatch in the labour market. For instance, in Goa, the availability of employment opportunities is not an issue, but the reluctance of the local population to engage in available jobs is the real issue. The day people from other States show reluctance or stop coming to Goa as housemaids, construction workers, blue-collar industrial workers, municipal workers, etc., there will be pressure on the Goan economy to find people for such jobs.
Therefore, considering varying levels of fertility in different States and UTs, a one-size-fits-all policy may not be applicable nationally. Andhra Pradesh has become the first State in India to declare a pro-fertility policy, comprising various announcements like Rs 25,000 cash support for the third child, monthly financial assistance for child nutrition and care, free schooling for the second and third child, extended maternity leave, paternity leave provisions, childcare centres, working women’s hostels, subsidised IVF and assisted reproduction services, etc. With a fertility rate lower than Andhra Pradesh, Goa too may have to announce a pro-fertility policy sooner rather than later. It may not be surprising if the Central Government’s Eighth Pay Commission recommends discontinuation of small family norm incentives for government employees.
