Essays

Family Planning has been adopted as our national policy and a lot of money is being spent on it. But still we are far behind in achieving our targets. India's population is increasing fast in comparison to its dwindling and depleting resources. This explosion in population has been eating up the modest increase of about 5% in our per capita income. By the middle of the century our population would be about 200 crores. It shows an increase of 2.6 per cent a year.

Consequently, it is natural that our experts have started sounding warning bells. This rapid growth of our population has resulted in a very high pressure on our resources of food, employment, housing, clothing, education and alleviation of poverty. With the phenomenal advancement in science, technology, medicine, health and physical care, the mortality rate has come down considerably but the rate of the birth has not come down commensurately. In the absence of effective control and check on our population, all our five Year Plans and developmental schemes are bound to be a failure. As a result about half of our population has been living below the poverty line. Millions and millions of our fellow citizens are deprived of basic necessities of life. And the gap between the rich and the poor has been on the increase.

In spite of much campaign and well organized propaganda the advantages of a small family have not been accepted by the masses. India consists mainly of villages and rural population. About 80 per cent of its population lives in villages. They are ignorant, uneducated and; superstitious. They still regard children as gifts of God: and divine ornaments, of women,                                       

They believe in luck and fate and so they say that every new born child brings its own luck. As such they could not be motivated to have Planned Parenthood with two children norm. The much desired people's participation in the family planning and welfare programme is not there. The majority of rural masses have yet to accept the various contraceptive methods of family planning and family welfare,                                            

It is in keeping with our democratic set up, that the family welfare programme is a voluntary one.  People are free to choose their own methods of family planning that suit them best. People are being involved in the movement through social institutions, voluntary agencies, social-workers and people's representatives.

it is good that no coercive measures are adopted but lack of peoples involvement to a desired level has  been a real source of concern to the people  responsible for the success of the movement. It is high time {hat some mild drastic steps are also taken in curb our ever increasing population.

Unless and until we have proper check on our population growth, it is almost impossible to improve the quality of life and standard of living Government servants and employees of public sector undertakings violating the two children norm may be penalized. The couples in the reproductive age group should be forced to adopt effective contraceptive devices like condoms IUD insertions, oral pills like 'Mala-D' and other approved Family welfare methods. The programme of family planning needs to be vigorously pursued.

The family planning programme in our country has been totally a voluntary one. During the emergency some drastic and coercive measures were adopted, which were resisted by the people. They also resulted in the overthrow of Mrs. Indira Gandhi in the general election. Therefore, it has been made totally voluntary. The programme includes maternal and child healthcare, their nutrition and family welfare.

The various schemes related to family planning and welfare are implemented through the state governments and for it the Centre provides the scent per cent assistance. There is a network of primary health centres and sub-centres in the villages of the country to popularize the movement.

The number of these centres is being increased further. Nirodhs or condoms, oral pills, contraceptive jelly, creams etc. are being distributed free of charge through these health centres and other agencies. These are also available at subsidized cheap rates at various retail outlets, chemist shops and pharmaceutical establishments.

The facility of termination of pregnancy, in cases of failures of family welfare methods and contraceptives, is also now available at selected hospitals and dispensaries. There, well-trained '' doctors and nurses have been well equipped for this purpose. Since April, 1972 abortion has been legalized in India. But abortion or termination of undesired pregnancy should be adopted only as a last resort and on medical advice.

Much improved sterilization and tubectomy operation facilities now exist at various hospitals. Dispensaries and primary health-centres throughout the country. Special camps and campaigns are also being organized in villages and towns for this purpose. Financial and other incentives are also given to the people, who voluntarily under-go these operations.

Research activities are going on at Family Welfare Training and Research Centre, Mumbai, Central Health Education Bureau, New Delhi, All India Institute of Medical Sciences. Delhi in the areas of demography, reproductive biology and fertility control. In order to provide the maternal and child health-care services to more and more women and babies the post-natal programme has now been extended to over 1000 hospitals spread all over the country in villages and towns.

The raising of the minimum age of marriage to 18 for girls and 21 for boys coupled with the legalization of termination of undesired pregnancies have been a step in right direction.

The family planning and welfare programme in our country was launched officially in 1952 and since then there has been commendable progress and there is a good deal of consciousness among the educated urban people about family planning and use of contrastive and yet we can learn something more from China in this respect.

No doubt there is much and appreciable awareness among the people about family planning and mother and child healthcare. More and more people have come to realize the many positive advantages that are there in a small and well-planned family and yet there is still a vast gap between awareness and acceptance of the various measures of family planning. To bridge this gap there should be a number of incentives and disincentives.

A useful and progressive family planning programme should necessarily seek the help of more and more voluntary agencies, social workers, Panchayat-members, village medical Practioners. Elders, religious groups and village nurses and dais. What we need is an integrated approach to the problem.