Any appraisal of the health status of a nation must be done against the backdrop
of its population. Presently, we are 1 billion and our population is growing at a rate of
about 18 million every year. With only 2.4 per cent of the world land area, India has to
support 16 per cent of its population. As per the 1901 census, India's population was 238
million (the then India included India, Pakistan and Bangladesh of today). During these
hundred years, the population of India alone has become more than four times. All our
economic progress is becoming far outstripped by the increase in our numbers. And this
galloping growth in population is the most important determinant of all aspects of our
national wellbeing including health