India risks losing demographic advantage after 2 decades due to declining birth rate: Goa Governor

Panaji, Sep 24 (PTI) Goa Governor P Ashok Gajapathi Raju on Wednesday expressed concern over the declining birth rate in the country, and said while India is currently seen as a young nation, it may lose this demographic advantage after two decades if corrective measures are not taken.

In an interview with PTI at the Goa Raj Bhavan, he cautioned that the future will be bleak if people stop having children, and advised them to stick to the 'hum do, hamare do' (we two, our two) policy.

The 74-year-old leader, who was sworn in as the governor of the coastal state in July this year, said that India should learn from the mistakes committed by other countries.

If you insist on making the same mistakes then you have a problem, he said.

"Most of America went to the family control mode. We all say children are our future and then we don't allow children to be born, then what are we doing to our future?...This is a trend which you have seen in the West, also seen in a lot of countries, including China. Demographically, if you are not going to have children, then we don't have a future," he said.

The former union civil aviation minister said the dwindling birth rate in India should be seen as a problem.

"I am looking at it as a problem. Today, it might not be a problem, but maybe 20 years from now, it will be," he said.

Kerala has already gone into negative growth, he said, adding, "I think Goa has caught up on the birth rate. I say that at least stick to 'hum do, hamare do'." Any population which increases at a fast pace is a problem. Similarly, if it declines at such a rapid pace, that also creates a problem, he said.

"The problem we have seen worldwide. If you look at China, demographically, it has a different type of problem. In that country, even gender ratios have gone haywire," the governor said.

According to him, India has to watch out in the next 20 years.

"What is America's problem today? They have to go and get talent from wherever they can in the world. They were so cost conscious, they were so busy making money that they forgot the human element," he said.

When there is immigration, the immigrants bring their culture, language, literature and their own value structure with them, he said.

"My worry is that 20-25 years down the line how are you going to manage with the alarming rate that it is reducing," he said.

The governor said that India is in a comfortable position right now.

"We are called as a younger country, but the Centre and states will have to think about this considering the future," he said. PTI RPS NP