Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu asked people to make more children. The TDP Supremo has been ardently promoting population growth in recent times. He is often heard saying that with changing population trends, the focus should shift from population control to population promotion. However, in his speeches he refers to the ratio of young and elderly age groups. He urged people to have more children so that the state will have a healthy young population.
More than promotion of population and increasing young population, it is an attempt to dodge the punishment given by Fourteenth Finance Commission (FFC) for the states which achieved low fertility rate.
The FFC increased the weightage for population in the 2011 census and decreased the weightage for population in the 1971 Census. This is a bounty to the states which recorded a high fertility rate in the past four decades. Andhra Pradesh is at a disadvantage with this arrangement as the fertility rate tumbled.
Horizontal Devolution Formula in the 13th and 14th Finance Commission
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The population growth rate of the state which was 13.86 percent in 2001 reduced to 10.98 percent in 2011. There has been decline in the population of AP not only due to fertility but also due to migrations to other states and countries. Based on the trends, the population growth rate will further comer down.
The Government of AP initially demanded the FFC to maintain status quo as far as the population figures are concerned. But with FFC not heeding to the request, the state will be securing less funds from the centre, do to the dilution from the 1971 population.
Also, the distribution of grants to States for local bodies is based on 2011 census data with the 90percent weight to population and 10percent to area. On the basis of rural and urban population, the grants to states will be divided into two, a grant to duly constituted Gram Panchayats and a grant to duly constituted Municipal bodies.
Income distance gets a weightage of 50%, which is calculated using per-capita GSDP. Using per-capita as measure is disadvantageous to the states with less population as they have higher per capita income based on the trends.
The use of 2011 Census is penalising around ten states with Tamil Nadu facing significant loss compared to AP.
AP which has taken measures to reduce the population growth for decades now, decided to take a step back especially due to the deficit it is facing in funds. Chandrababu has time and again expressed his opinion about reconsidering the focus on population control.
It is argued that India is a federal structure and that the responsibility of balanced development of all States rests with the central government. The purpose of the Center is to develop the backward states on par with the developing and developed states. But this should not deprive the progressing states of funds.
