Assam Congress slams CM Sarma’s population remark
The Assam unit of Congress has slammed Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma for asking a minority group within the State to undertake population management measures.
Marking the completion of a month of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led authorities on Thursday, the Chief Minister mentioned the population of the minorities wanted to be in test to stop encroachment and stress on land sources.
“He said that if the population explosion continues, the Kamakhya Temple (Guwahati) land will one day be encroached upon. This is unbecoming of the Chief Minister who is expected to be well-versed in the demographic facts of a State he represents,” Congress chief Bobbeeta Sharma mentioned on Friday.
NFHS survey
The Assam Pradesh Congress Committee cited the most recent National Family Health Survey (NFHS) launched in December 2020, which mentioned the overall fertility charge (TFR) declined throughout most Indian States within the final 5 years.
“The total fertility rate is defined as the average number of children that would be born to a woman by the time she ends childbearing. A TFR of 2.1 is known as the replacement rate. The fertility rate of less than 2.1 implies that the total population will be less than the existing population which is also called the negative growth rate,” the celebration mentioned in an announcement.
“Now, the same survey said the fertility rate of women in Assam declined from 2.2 in 2015-16 to 1.9 in 2020-21, which means the future population of Assam will only be less than the current population. Hence there is no question of an increase in population, as the data of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare show,” the celebration mentioned.
In the context of the NFHS survey, the Chief Minister’s remark on “population explosion” in Assam was misinformed and deceptive, Ms. Sharma mentioned.
“But if he is referring to the population explosion that may happen in future due to immigration of people from Bangladesh and Pakistan because of the implementation of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, then his concern is perhaps valid,” she added.