The Andhra government is planning to bring a law to make only those with more than two children eligible to contest local body elections.
In a surprising move, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has expressed concern about the growing ageing population in the country and has brought a new population policy to control the same. Moreover, CM Naidu has also urged families in the southern states to have more children.
“The government is planning to bring a law to make only those with more than two children eligible to contest local body elections,” Naidu announced.
In his address, the Head of State, the Chief Minister, shared his plans to bring about new legislation encouraging bigger families. He revealed, “Our government’s objective is to put a law in place to ensure only those who have more than two offspring are eligible to participate in local body elections,” as stated by Naidu.
“Although we have a demographic advantage till 2047, signs of ageing problem have started appearing in South India. Many countries like Japan, China and some European countries are grappling with this issue, where a large part of the population is elderly. We are thinking of providing incentives to families with more children, encouraging couples to have more children,” Naidu added after launching the policy.
New Population policy: Logic from CM Naidu
CM Naidu also said that, in many villages in Andhra Pradesh and across the country, younger generation has moved to cities and only elderly people are left. Naidu has observed a noteworthy drop in southern states’ fertility rate to 1.6, distinctly lower than the country’s average rate of 2.1. CM Naidu circled a word of caution around the hypothetical situation of the trend persisting. By 2047, we might be facing serious complications thanks to an elderly-heavy populace, which would be a far cry from the ideal situation, he said.
“Having more children is also your responsibility. You are not doing it for yourself, it is also for the benefit of the nation, it is a service to society”, he said about the responsibility for new children. In the past, Naidu has echoed the same concerns. He pointed out that the average age of the state’s dwellers currently stands at 32, however, it is forecasted to climb up to 40 come 2047.