Population & Demographics is a fundamental concept that involves the scientific study of human populations, including their size, composition, distribution, and the processes that change them: fertility, mortality, and migration. The term "Demography" originates from the Greek words demos (people) and graphy (describe). In India, the collection of population statistics has ancient roots, with Kautilya's Arthashastra (3rd Century BC) prescribing population counts for state policy and taxation. The modern, decennial census tradition began with the first synchronous census conducted in 1881 under British rule.
The primary mechanism for data collection is the Census of India, which is a Union subject under Article 246 of the Constitution, listed at serial number 69 of the Seventh Schedule. The census is legally governed by the Census Act, 1948, which empowers the Central Government to conduct the census and appoint a Census Commissioner. A key provision of the Act is the maintenance of strict secrecy, ensuring that individual records are not open to inspection or admissible as evidence in court, except for offenses related to the census itself. The Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner (RGI), established in 1949 under the Ministry of Home Affairs, oversees the decennial census.
Demographics connects directly to the National Population Policy (NPP), 2000, a comprehensive policy framework adopted on February 15, 2000, to address population growth and family planning. The NPP, 2000, marked a shift from coercion to a rights-based, voluntary approach, with the long-term objective of achieving a stable population by 2045. It set a medium-term goal to bring the Total Fertility Rate (TFR) to the replacement level of 2.1 by 2010. Another related mechanism is the Sample Registration System (SRS), which became fully operational in 1969-70 and provides reliable annual estimates of vital statistics like birth rate, death rate, and Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) using a dual record system. The decennial census, last held in 2011, was postponed in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, making the annual SRS reports, such as the SRS Statistical Report 2021, a crucial source for recent demographic insights.