StatsGuru: Two Indias

India's Census has recently released data from the decennial exercise that allows some final conclusions, and draws attention to the startling demographic difference between India's north and its south. As Table 1 shows, the states of the Hindi-speaking belt are growing quickly in population, though not as quickly as they did in the 1990s - but definitely much more quickly than the South. Note also that Nagaland is the only state to have seen a decline in population. In the recently released data, India's treatment of its women and girls has also been foregrounded. In particular, it is clear that some states are doing much worse to India's women than others. As Table 2 shows, in 2001, it appeared that the sex ratio problem in the North was worse than it was in 1991, but 2011 seems to be a little better than 2001. However, that may not last. According to Table 3, the child sex ratio across the states of the North and the West is worse than it has ever been. Meanwhile, the puzzle about female participation in the workforce continues, and is illustrated in Table 4. Many states have more women working than they did in 1991. On the other hand, many wealthier states, like Gujarat, have seen the participation rate slide - suggesting perhaps that women working is now considered acceptable, but something to be avoided if it can be afforded. In Table 5, the vast strides made in literacy over the past 50 years have been recorded, and the decreasing size of the gender gap in literacy - which is still substantial, however - is noted. Finally, Table 6 reveals the population density of the Gangetic plain states is so much higher than most of the rest of India, except for the Far South. (Click here for graphics)