New Delhi, July 10: Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee today said "uncontrolled" increase in population was hampering the country's speedy growth and asked people to make population stabilisation a mass movement by keeping families small. Issuing an appeal on the eve of 'World Population Day', he said growth of population beyond sustainable levels is in nobody's interest.

"People are a nation's most prized resource and the main pillar of its progress and strength. Government is committed to ensuring a better quality of life for all citizens," he said.

"However, uncontrolled growth of population has become a hurdle in the path of India's efforts to achieve speedy and sustainable socio-economic growth and environmental protection," the Prime Minister said.

He said that India has 17 per cent of the world's population on a landmass that is only 2.4 per cent of the world's area.

Every sixth human being is an Indian and nearly 1.5 crore children are born each year, he said, adding it was "our moral duty" to ensure all of them have access to health and education facilities, and are able to grow up in a fair, just and equitable system.

"For this it is necessary to achieve population stabilisation as envisioned in the holistic National Population Policy adopted in 2000," Vajpayee said.

"I appeal to people belonging to all communities, and especially in states that are lagging behind in this regard, to make the task of population stabilisation a mass movement" by pledging to keep families small, he said.
Bureau Report