Distribution of Population
- India has an uneven pattern of population distribution.
- Five states (Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh) along with Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka, and Gujarat account for about 76% of the total population.
- Physical factors such as climate, terrain, and availability of water largely determine the pattern of population distribution.
- Socio-economic and historical factors like agricultural development, human settlement patterns, transport network, industrialization, and urbanization also influence population distribution.
- Regions with early human settlement, agricultural development, and transport network have higher population concentration, even with resource degradation.
- Urban regions with industrial development and urbanization have high concentration of population due to rural-urban migration.
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Density of Population
- Density of population is number of persons per unit area.
- In India, it increased from 117 persons/ sq km in 1951 to 382 persons/sq km in 2011.
- Spatial variation in population densities in India ranges from 17 to 11,297 persons per sq km.
- Higher densities found in northern Indian states like Bihar, West Bengal, and Uttar Pradesh.
- Lower densities in hill states of Himalayan region and North eastern states (excluding Assam).
- Very high densities in Union Territories (excluding Andaman and Nicobar islands).
- Physiological density = total population / net cultivated area, Agricultural density = total agricultural population / net cultivable area.
- Activity: Calculate Physiological and Agricultural densities of Indian States and Union Territories using data from Appendix (ii).
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Growth of Population
- Phase I (1901-1921): Stagnant or stationary phase with low growth rate, high birth and death rates due to poor health, illiteracy, and inefficient distribution systems.
- Phase II (1921-1951): Steady population growth due to improved health, sanitation, and distribution systems, despite high birth rates and economic depression.
- Phase III (1951-1981): Period of population explosion caused by a rapid fall in mortality rate but high fertility rate, leading to an average annual growth rate of 2.2%.
- Phase IV (post 1981-present): Growth rate remains high but slows down gradually due to decreased crude birth rate from increased mean age at marriage and female education.
- Projected population of India will reach 1,350 million by 2025.
- Wide variation in growth rates across different areas in the country.
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Regional Variation in Population Growth
- The growth rate of population in Indian States and Union Territories from 1991-2001 shows a distinct pattern.
- Southern states like Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Puducherry, and Goa had a low growth rate of not more than 20% over the decade.
- A continuous belt of states from west to east in the north-west, north, and north-central parts of the country had a relatively high growth rate of 20-25%.
- During 2001-2011, the growth rates of almost all States and Union Territories were lower than in the previous decade.
- The percentage decadal growth rates of the six most populous States, namely, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh, all fell during 2001-2011 compared to 1991-2001.
- The Government of India has undertaken policies to empower the youth, including the National Youth Policy (NYP-2014) and the National Policy for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship in 2015.
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Population Composition
- Population composition is a significant field in population geography.
- It involves studying various aspects such as age, sex, residence, ethnicity, language, religion, marital status, literacy, occupation, etc.
- This summary will focus on the composition of the Indian population concerning rural-urban characteristics, language, religion, and occupation.
- The analysis includes the distribution of the rural and urban population.
- It also covers the linguistic and religious diversity of the Indian population.
- Lastly, it discusses the pattern of occupation among Indians.
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Rural - Urban Composition
- Rural-urban population composition is a significant indicator of social and economic characteristics.
- In India, 68.8% of the total population lived in villages in 2011, with 640,867 villages, out of which 93.2% were inhabited.
- Rural population distribution varies throughout India, with Bihar and Sikkim having high percentages and Goa and Maharashtra having low percentages.
- Urban population proportion in India is low (31.16% in 2011) but is growing faster than rural population due to economic development and improved health conditions.
- Urban population growth is seen in states/UTs along main road links, industrial areas, and around cities, while rural-urban migration is low in agriculturally stagnant and remote areas.
- Both rural and urban populations have shown considerable increases, indicating socio-economic development and migration from rural to urban areas.
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Linguistic Composition
- India has a rich linguistic diversity with 179 languages and 544 dialects.
- In modern India, there are 22 scheduled languages and several non-scheduled ones.
- Hindi speakers make up the highest percentage among scheduled language speakers.
- Sanskrit, Bodo, and Manipuri speakers form the smallest language groups (2011).
- Linguistic regions in India do not have clear boundaries, but instead gradually merge and overlap.
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Linguistic Classification
- Major Indian languages are part of 4 language families.
- These families have sub-families and branches/groups.
- The 4 language families can be understood from Table 1.2.
- Indian languages’ classification includes sub-families and groups.
- The classification structure includes families, sub-families, and branches.
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Religious Composition
- Hindus make up 79.8% of India’s population, followed by Muslims (14.2%), Christians (2.3%), Sikhs (1.7%), Buddhists (0.7%), and Jains (0.4%).
- Muslims, the largest religious minority, are concentrated in Jammu & Kashmir, West Bengal, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, and Lakshadweep, forming a majority in Kashmir valley and Lakshadweep.
- Christian population is mostly in rural areas along the Western coast (Goa, Kerala) and hill states (Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Chotanagpur, Manipur).
- Sikhs are concentrated in Punjab, Haryana, and Delhi. Jains and Buddhists, the smallest groups, have concentrations in Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Maharashtra, respectively, with other areas of majority in various states.
- Other religions, including Zoroastrians, tribal, and indigenous faiths, are scattered in small pockets throughout India.
- Religious expression on the landscape includes sacred structures, cemeteries, and assemblages of plants and animals, with variations in size, form, and density.
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Composition of Working Population
- India’s population divided into three groups: main workers, marginal workers, and non-workers.
- Only 39.8% of the population are workers, indicating a larger dependent population.
- Work participation rate varies from 39.6% in Goa to 49.9% in Daman and Diu.
- Higher work participation in areas of lower economic development due to manual labor needs.
- Majority of workers, 54.6%, are in the primary sector (cultivators and agricultural laborers).
- Male workers outnumber female workers in all sectors.
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- Work participation rate varies significantly across different sectors and states in the country.
- Himachal Pradesh and Nagaland have a high percentage of cultivators, while Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Madhya Pradesh have a larger share of agricultural laborers.
- Highly urbanized areas like Delhi, Chandigarh, and Puducherry have a larger proportion of workers engaged in non-farm sectors, indicating limited farming land and industrialization.
- The total workers’ earnings for primary ($26,30,22,473), secondary ($1,83,36,307), and tertiary ($20,03,84,531) sectors have been provided.
- For the composite bar graph, compare the proportion of male and female workers in agriculture, household industries, and other sectors for India and respective states.
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