On Friday, the premier government policy think-tank Niti Aayog will hold a consultative meeting to discuss a roadmap for population stabilisation and is expected come out with recommendations to address key gaps in India’s family planning programmes.
According to the reports, the Niti Aayog will hold a national consultation on population stabilisation titled “Realising the vision of population stabilisation: leaving no one behind” on Friday to explore ways to strengthen the country’s population policy and family planning programmes.
Reportedly, the event will be held in partnership with the Population Foundation of India, and will also include government officials from the Centre, seven states and experts on the subject.
“The recommendations from the consultation will contribute to a NITI Aayog working paper to help achieve India’s vision of attaining population stabilisation, as voiced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 15 August 2019,” according to a press statement from NITI Aayog.
The officials and experts will brainstorm over recommendations such as treating population stabilisation and family planning as a national priority and ensuring inter-governmental convergence and multisectoral participation.
Some of the key recommendations expected to emerge after the meeting are increasing budgetary allocations for family planning, enhancing the basket of contraceptive choices, addressing existing socio-cultural barriers towards contraception as well as social determinants of health such as age at marriage and sex-selective practices, the statement added.
The working paper is expected to address key gaps in India’s family planning programmes. The meeting will also offer constructive recommendations to address regional disparities in outcomes by focusing on adolescents and youths, inter-departmental convergence, demand generation, access to contraceptive services and quality of care.
Speaking from the ramparts of Red Fort about population explosion in the country, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had stressed on the issue of “population explosion” and had urged the country to work towards family planning, smaller families to ensure that dreams of children get fulfilled.
PM Modi had insisted on necessary of population stabilisation in the country. PM Modi had said keeping families small is “an act of patriotism”. “I want you to do proper family planning and you will naturally see that a smaller family can be happier and more content. Your family will be away from diseases, will have more resources,” the Prime Minister had said.