Students walk for awareness on population stabilisation

Over 2,000 students from various schools of Delhi participated in a walk Thursday to spread the message of population stabilisation.

The walk from India Gate to Vijay Chowk, which was organised by Jansankhya Sthirtha Kosh, an autonomous body under the ministry of health, was flagged off by union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad.

The walk was an effort to build momentum and raise awareness on issues like low female literacy, early age at marriage and early child bearing, among a host of other challenges to be dealt with to address the issue of population stabilisation, a government release said.

The students were carrying placards with slogans supporting the cause of population stabilisation.

Azad said the walk was organised to underscore the importance of population stabilisation at sustainable levels for overall socio-economic development.

He hoped that the walk would be able to generate awareness and persuade people to accept the small family norm for the betterment of the health of the mother, child and the whole family.

As per the 2011 census, India's population has risen to 1.21 billion.

The decadal growth rate during 2001-2011 is 17.64 percent, in comparison to 21.15 percent in 1991-2001.

The 2001-2011 period is the first decade, with the exception of 1911-1921, which had added less population compared to the previous decade, but states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh have witnessed high growth of population.