Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Friday underlined India’s demographic advantage amid global ageing trends, suggesting that couples have three children.
The Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister asserted that population growth would play a decisive role in shaping the country’s future on the world stage.
Chief Minister Naidu made the remarks while addressing the Bharatiya Vigyan Sammelan, which is being held at the National Sanskrit University (NSU) in Tirupati. Speaking at the inaugural session, Naidu compared demographic trends across major economies and said India stood out as the only country expected to register significant population growth in the coming decades.
“Nobody is having a population dividend…This time our countries are going to have population either decrease or increase. USA by +9.8, China is going to decrease 11% and also Germany, same thing declining. India is only the country which is going to add 14.8% to this time. We are very very fortunate,” the CM said.
Naidu also pointed to the Indian diaspora, estimating that 4 to 5 crore Indians are currently living abroad, and linked their economic success to India’s human capital strength.
“…there is a big problem of ageing and also declining population. In this regard, as on today, if you see, from India, around 4 to 5 crore people are living outside India. If you go to any country today, the highest per capita income is earned by Indians. Any posh locality, even in America. If you see America, average income of Americans is 55,000 dollars to 60,000 dollars whereas Indian earns around 135,000 dollars, more than double,” he added.
Citing RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, the TDP leader advised that every Indian couple must have three children. “As Mohan Bhagwat has rightly mentioned always, every couple should have three children. This is very important. I am also saying always, we are crossing now slowly replacement level. Everybody that is our culture, if all of us think focusing on population then by 2047, centuries together, that is India time only, no one can dominate under global scenario. That is going to happen.”
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat was also present during the inaugural session of the Sammelan. The four-day event, which brings together experts from the national scientific fraternity, as well as academic and research institutions, is being held at NSU and is scheduled to conclude on December 29.
The event focuses on discussions around science, culture, and India’s long-term development, with demographic trends emerging as a key theme during the opening session.