Essay Example on India: Second Largest Population in the World & Its Impact

Introduction

India has the second-largest population in the world. According to UNs recent demographic data (July 1, 2019), India's population stands at 1.37 billion, which is only second to China, which stands at 1.44 billion (Shane, 2019). From the data, it is estimated that one out of six people on earth lives in India. Population growth in India can be attributed to several factors, the major being, high birth rate. Population growth has both positive and negative effects, which mostly have a direct effect on the Environment. Demographic data from India's previous census attest to a rapid population growth from 873.28 million people in the 1990s to 1.37 billion in 2019. The demographic data is illustrated in Table 1 (See on page 8) (Shane, 2019). This has had a great effect not only on the standards of living of the citizens in India but also on the Environment. This paper will discuss the rapid growth of the population in India and how it has affected the Environment negatively.

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Major Reasons for Population Growth in India from 1990-2019

Population growth is most rapid in major urban areas. In India, for instance, cities like Mumbai and Delhi have experienced greater population growth as compared to Agra and Tirunelveli. This is due to rural-urban migration, which is still rampant in India. Generally, population growth in India is due to several reasons; the major being, higher birth rate, universal marriage system, illiteracy, Traditional beliefs, and illegal migration (Ministry of Home Affairs, 2017). India's birth rate is quite high as compared to the death rate. According to the most recent statistical report by the office of Registrar General and Census Commissioner, India (July 2017), the birth rate stood at approximately 20 per thousand while the death rate stood at approximately 6.5 per thousand this is illustrated in Graph 1.1 and 1.2 (See on page 8 & 9) (Ministry of Home Affairs, 2017). This means that approximately 20 healthy infants are born per a thousand people, while only approximately seven people per thousand die annually. This has contributed to rapid population growth in India. The major contributor to this is the high fertility rate. Population policies have been put in place, but still, the ratio is high as compared to other developing countries.

Secondly, Indians consider marriage universal; hence, it is a sacred obligation that must be adhered to by all. This also makes sure that almost every woman is married at her reproductive age (Ministry of Home Affairs, 2017). There are very many cases of early marriage, which in turn makes women have a longer reproductive period as opposed to those who get married later in their years. The latter might reach menopause earlier hence reducing their reproductive life. The other reason for population growth in India is illiteracy and poverty. Most of the Indian population still lives below the poverty line. Due to a lack of employment, most of them cannot afford basic needs and have to work extra hard to make a living. This, in turn, ironically gives most of them the notion that the bigger the family, the better, for there is a need for as many members as possible working to earn an income. Some only have access to manual labor on farms. A large number of families can also be attributed to the fact that most of the citizens do not use contraceptives. This could be partly because of religious beliefs or lack of timely information.

Cultural customs and beliefs are another reason for the growth of the population in India. Most of the Indians still hold fast the importance of sons in a family. Men are the breadwinners according to the customs; hence, sons are regarded highly. This custom increases pressure on most parents in India to get sons. The more sons one gets, the better. This has brought about large families, especially in cases where a family has a problem getting a son (Ministry of Home Affairs, 2017). Lastly, illegal migration has also contributed to population growth in India. Most of these immigrants come from neighboring countries like Nepal, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. The main cause of their immigration is mostly education and search for better employment opportunities.

Effects of Population Growth in India on their Environment

Population growth generally has both positive and negative effects. This is most evident when we look at the social and economic development of a country. Most of the time, the population impacts the economy positively, for it creates availability of labor force, which in turn leads to technological advancement. Population growth promotes the need for technological change so that it can cater to the increasing demands for certain goods and services. Also, with growth in population, the labor force is cheaper due to its availability. This results in high productivity because of an increase in employment as businesses and companies are more inclined to cheap labor.

On the other hand, it affects social and economic development negatively when it eventually leads to overpopulation. This takes a toll on the simple factors such as availability of food, education, housing, health, and employment, which are all based on the law of diminishing returns. This is to say that, with the rapid increase of population in a country, it would reach a point that the economy would not accommodate its population's needs, for instance, laborers. This is because it needs only a certain number to yield maximum output. This leads to unemployment and other social vices like an increase in crime rate, which rises due to unemployment.

Population growth in India has detrimental effects on the Environment. With its overpopulation margins currently, most of its resources are overstretched, and this hurts the Environment. Environmental factors like air, land, and water are all contaminated. Poor standards of living and sanitation have led to contamination of land and water bodies while springing up industries and factories have immensely increased air pollution. This has a lot of negative effects on both animal and plant life in the country.

Demand for Energy Has Risen

The demand for energy consumption has risen with the rise of the population in India. This has affected mostly fossil fuel energy sources like coal, petroleum, and lignite, which are overexploited to meet their consumption rate in the country. Hydroelectric power consumption has also increased drastically within the years. The production of coal and lignite has had a drastic increase from 32.2 million tons in 1950-51 to 313.70 million tons in 2000-01 and 452.22 tons in 2018 (Nagdeve, 2007). Petroleum products also registered an increase in consumption from 3.3 million tons in 1950-51 to 95.5 million in 2000-01 and 112.9 million in 2018. Electricity consumption has also recorded an increase from 5 billion KWH in 1950-51 to 500 billion KWH in 2000-01 and 912 billion KWH in 2018 (Nagdeve, 2007). This is to say that a drastic increase in population has caused rapid production and consumption of energy in India. This could result in exhaustion of these natural resources such as coal due to overexploitation. On the other hand, increased use of fossil fuel energy results in air pollution, which is harmful to the people of India and their Environment.

Air Pollution

Cities in India are among the most polluted places in the world. Some of the most common pollutants found in Indian cities include Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2), residual suspended particulate matter (RSPM), carbon monoxide (CO), lead, suspended particulate matter (SPM), and sulfur dioxide (SO2) (Nagdeve, 2007). All these pollutants combined in the air result in deterioration of air in urban areas. The emission of these pollutants into the air is because of rapid growth in population, which in turn leads to an increase of industrial and vehicular pollution. Most people use motor vehicles that burn fossil fuel to emit harmful pollutants into the air. If the number of people using them was to be increased, it would result in more pollution. The same case applies to an increase in industries and factories. The more the industries, the more the pollutants released in the air. These industries increase due to the large population, which guarantees the availability of cheap labor.

Water Pollution and Water Scarcity

The use of water in India has also increased because of rapid population growth. Most of the freshwater in India (about 90%) is used for agriculture (Nagdeve, 2007). India is known for the production of farm produce for both subsistence and selling. The other percentage goes to industrial and domestic use (3 and 5% respectively). However, not all the freshwater withdrawn is put to effective use. Most of the water is lost, especially in agricultural practices. This has had a great effect on water reserves in India, leading to scarcity of this important resource. The other reason for this is that water used in factories most times cannot be reused. Sometimes it is released into the rivers, contaminating the remaining water available.

Water pollution in India originates from three main avenues. First, is domestic sewerage, where sewage from homesteads is not directed properly and ends up in water bodies like streams and lakes. This has increased, especially with the springing up of poor housing due to poverty. Secondly, the other avenue is agricultural activities, which make use of fertilizers, pesticides, and other chemicals. These mostly end up in rivers and lakes when it rains. When leached, they also affect soil productivity. Lastly, industrial wastes contaminate water bodies. This is even worse in India, where the population has forced the increase of industries. Most lack proper mechanisms of disposing of their waste and opt for easier alternatives like channeling liquid effluent into streams and lakes.

Global Warming and Climate Change

India's population growth and increased energy use play a great role in global warming. The global warming estimates highlight that climate change would cause a change in precipitation patterns, marine system, soil moisture, water availability, and rise of the sea levels. The change of climate is a result of the destruction of the ozone layer due to emission greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Industries produce most of these gases in not only India but also other industrialized countries. The emission of these gases is directly proportional to the population growth and increase of industrialization in India.

Loss of Biodiversity Due to Habitat Destruction

India is one of the mega biodiversity countries of the world. Population increase leads to increasing human settlements and increasing demand for food, fuel, and building materials. All this harms the flora and fauna, which is the habitat for about 46,000 plants and 81,000 animal species (from about 70% of the total geographical area surveyed) (Nagdeve, 2007). Modern agricultural techniques also threaten indigenous crop species, which might be better adapted for the environmental conditions. Activities like mining, lying of communication, and transport networks also threaten plants and animals habitat. Most of the trees are cut down during such practices, and the disappearance of forest cover usually results in migration of animals that inhabited the destroyed forest. Graph 2 (see on page 9) shows the effects of the population increase in India to forest cover. As the population increase, most of the cover of the forest is lost. This is due to settlements and agricultural practices. It is estimated that over 500 animal species in India alone are threatened with an extinction rate of one per year, while approximately 8000 flowering plants are also thought to be at risk of extinct...