India Population and Family Planning Policy - Essay Example

The population problem has included in the school curriculum. Family planning programs have been increased in the ’80s with the help of the state governments. The Indian government focused more on rural areas to control the population through primary health centers. Family planning programs such as All-India Hospitals Post-partum Program at district- and sub district-level hospitals, reorganization of primary health care facilities in urban slum areas, reservation of hospital beds for tubal ligature operations, re-modeling of intrauterine device (IUD) rooms in rural family welfare centers attached to primary health care facilities, were included in the seventh “Five Year Plan” of the Indian government.

“Another important family planning program is the Project for Community Action in Family Planning. Located in Karnataka, the project operates in 154 project villages and 255 control Population 2villages” (India Population and Family Planning Policy). Studies have found that most couples, in fact, regard family planning positively in India. On the other hand, the Chinese traditionally prefer early marriage, early childbearing, and large families. “Chinas current family planning policy was made to meet the needs of a special period.

At present, the Chinese Family Planning Policy guidelines are as follows: 1. Controlling the rapid population growth and reducing birth defects.2. Late marriages, later births, and fewer babies; couples are encouraged to have only one child. In rural areas, the birth of a second child should be spaced 4-5 years from the first” (Li Wei-Xiong)Just like India, China also has started implement family planning measures in the 1960’s onwards. China has adopted strategies like late marriage, fewer births, and spacing of births to control the population.

Fewer births were advocated - one is good, two are acceptable and three are too many. “In the early 1980s, the central government advocated one child per family in urban areas. For rural area couples, one child is impractical, which causes difficulties; therefore, couples are encouraged to have a second child after a gap of around 4 years” (Li Wei-xiong). China has focused mainly on the value system to control the population. Every citizen has the right to take their own decisions, but they should have a commitment to the national progress.

Confucian principles are the core of such a value system. They also provided low-cost contraceptive methods to control the population.