Population is the number of people, living at a particular area (country/region) at a particular time, according to sociological point of view. The current human population growth is something unprecedented in the history of the world. If we look back at the history of human population growth, it can be divided into two major periods:
(1) An early period of hunters & food gatherers with less than a few million people.
(2) The present situation, where the rate of population growth has slowed down in wealthy industrialized nations but the population continues to increase rapidly in poor and less developed nations.
Change in population depends on the growth rate. There is a huge difference between the birth rate and the death rate. The population is currently growing at the rate of roughly 76 million people per year.
All countries should direct their efforts towards providing adequate means of livelihood to the ever increasing number of people through an integrated development of agriculture, trade, commerce and industries. However, any scheme adopted for this purpose cannot materialize unless the population problem is tackled satisfactorily.
Coming to Pakistan, it is a fact that we cannot exercise any effective change on population growth unless there is an appreciable rise in the standards of living for the common people.
Overpopulation weakens the economy in many respects. The increasing pressure of population will retard the economic progress and minimize the scope for social services in the form of education, wealth, shelter, etc. Therefore, population control is essentially needed for a progressive state so for a planned growth for our economy we need some effective check on population every year.
The benefits of family planning schemes initiated by the government are being emphasized in many ways. Nevertheless, it requires persistence on part of the government. Only through a persistent work can we see a change in the opinion of people about the population control.
We must make an all-out drive to educate the masses in the methods of family planning. It is a good sign that a section of our people, especially those belonging to the middle class, are gradually becoming population conscious. They are taking active interest in the methods devised and recommended for population control.
In conclusion, it can be stated that birth rate must be kept within limits to make a definite advancement towards a higher standard of living, which is the primary need of our nation. The task will certainly be much easier if people get a chance of reaching up to a higher standard of living. It will then serve as a kind of incentive to birth control itself.