The Hindu : Population norms: Centre may withhold funds

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Oct 04, 2002

National

National

Population norms: Centre may withhold funds

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI OCT. 3. The Union Health and Family Welfare Minister, Shatrughan Sinha, has indicated that the Centre may withdraw funds for population stabilisation to States which pursue their own norms of population stabilisation in violation of the National Population Policy.

Answering questions after inaugurating a Population Clock at Nirman Bhavan here on Tuesday, the Minister said he had written to States including Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh to conform their State policies to the national policy. "But if they want to pursue their own line, then we may have to withhold funds.''

Refusing to comment on the Union Human Resource Development Minister, Murli Manohar Joshi's recent comment that he was all for a two-child norm for politicians, Mr Sinha said the policy called for a "small family norm'' and there was no change in that thinking. He said he was against disincentives, but favoured incentives.

Mr. Sinha said most States were likely to achieve the Total Fertility Rate of 2.1 in 2010. The few States that might take longer include Bihar, U.P. M.P. and Rajasthan. He had recently written to the Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, to convene a meeting of these States.

The population clock installed at Nriman Bhavan is one of the three. The other two are at the Tribune office in Chandigarh and Hajratgunj Government Hospital in Lucknow. The clock at AIIMS here was dismantled due to construction of a flyover blocking it from sight, but it will be re-installed on the AIIMS OPD soon.

The clock at Nirman Bhavan computes and displays India's population on a continuous basis "every minute, every hour and every day''.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

National