Express News Service
PATNA: Amidst growing pro and against political rhetoric a day after Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath launched the state’s new population control policy, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar on Monday differed that only law can control population.
He said that the population control cannot be achieved only by enacting a law unless women are educated and made aware on it.
Quoting Bihar’s model of population control through education to women and girls, Nitish said that only through education and awareness, fertility rate can decrease and hence leading the control of population in natural way.
Speaking to the media after attending the weekly program called “Junta Ke Durbar Me Mukhyamantri”, Nitish Kumar categorically said, “Other states can do what they want to do but we believe that population cannot be controlled by law alone. Unless women are educated, it is not possible to control the population.”
In fact, within the NDA, the JDU is treading cautiously on the population control issue at a time when it has decided to contest the 2022 Uttar Pradesh assembly elections either alone or in alliance with BJP over 200 seats.
Nitish, who makes more often than not shrewd indirect political comment on any controversial issue, said that education amongst women and girls has helped a lot in checking fertility rate in Bihar, which once had higher than other states.
Quoting an example of China, Nitish Kumar said: “A policy of one child was brought in for population control in China. But today everyone knows what is the situation there. It has now come from one to two child policy. So, by improving the level of education among women and awareness, the fertility rates can be controlled.”
“When women are educated and awareness increases, the fertility rate automatically decreases. And surveys have proven this theory as correct. The fertility rate has been found to be low in matriculation and inter-educated women in Bihar,” he stressed substantiating his opinion.
In Bihar, he said that adequate attentions are being paid on girl’s education and the results have come out encouraging in checking fertility.
“Of late, the fertility rate in Bihar has come down to 3 per cent from what it used to be earlier about 4 per cent. We understand that the fertility rate will start declining after 2040 leading to population control,” he said, adding that the population start being controlled by 2040 with the fall in fertility rateafter massive awareness among women and girls.
In between all this, Kumar sarcastically said that sometimes educated people also produce more children as an exception indirectly hinting towards Lalu Prasad Yadav family somewhere in gestures.
Upon being asked about the remarks made by the Delhi High Court regarding the Uniform Civil Code, Nitish Kumar avoided commenting on the matter by saying “Why shouldn’t liquor be banned across the country.”
Nitish Kumar has started the “Junta Ke Darbar Me Mukhyamantri” weekly program again after five years. It was the first of this program when Nitish Kumar was speaking to the media on the sideline of it.
At a time when chief minister Nitish Kumar stressed upon the need of enhancing education among women and girls for effective control of population instead of just making a law alone, senior leader of JDU Upendra Kushwaha in Motihari speaking to the media, termed the Uttar Pradesh population control policy a welcome initiative.
“There must be a matter of population control because the way the population is increasing, naturally if it is not controlled, then no matter how much development happens, people will not be able to get the full benefits of it,” Kushwaha told the media.
He also said that wherever (upon being asked about UP population law), the initiative is taken on population control, it is welcome. On being asked, will the Bihar government make such policy; Kushwaha said: “The government has to work on what will happen in Bihar whenever required.”
