India has surpassed China to become the world’s most populous country with 142.86 crore people, said the United Nation.
China’s population dipped in the last year for the first time since 1960, when millions starved to death under the disastrous agricultural policies of former leader Mao Zedong.
According to the United Nations Population Funds’ (UNPF) report, India’s population is at 1,428.6 million or 1.4286 billion against 1.4257 billion for China.
The United States is a distant third, with an estimated population of 340 million, the data showed.
China is witnessing a decline in the birthrate and its workforce is also ageing. Several regions in China have announced plans to boost birth rates — but official efforts have so far failed to reverse the decline.
On the other hand, India has no recent data on its population as the last census was conducted in 2011. In India, the census is done every 10 years. It was due to be held in 2021 but had to be postponed due to the pandemic.
India Becomes World’s Most Populous Country: Top Points
Nearly 1/4th of India’s population is under the age of 14.
68 per cent of the population is in the 15 to 64 age group.
While 7 per cent is above the age of 65.
India’s population is expected to keep rising for nearly three decades before it peaks at 165 crore and then would start declining.
The new UN report also estimated that the global population will have hit 8.045 billion by mid-2023.
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