1.6. DEMOGRAPHIC CONDITION

Various details about the population of British India were first collected through a census in 1881. Though suffering from certain limitations, it revealed the unevenness in India’s population growth.

The first census in British India took place in 1881 and it was crucial because it provided a structured way to gather data on the population. Before this, there were no standardized methods to track population numbers or demographics. This initial census highlighted disparities in population growth across different regions, indicating that some areas were growing at a different rate than others.

Think of the census like a scorecard for a big sports tournament, where you track which teams are winning and how fast. Just like a tournament, the census helped understand which areas of India were 'winning' with rapid growth and which were 'losing' with slower populations.

Subsequently, every ten years, such census operations were carried out. Before 1921, India was in the first stage of demographic transition. The second stage of transition began after 1921.

Census operations continued every decade, and this consistent data collection allowed for tracking changes in population dynamics over time. The first stage of demographic transition is when a country has high birth and death rates, resulting in slow population growth. This changed in the 1920s, indicating improved health and living conditions, as noted by the beginning of the second stage, where death rates began to decline more significantly than birth rates, leading to rapid population growth.

Imagine a garden where initially, both the number of new plants (births) and plant deaths (deaths) are high, so it doesn’t grow much. After some improvements, like better watering (health), we start to see more plants surviving and growing, which leads to a rapid increase in the garden's size. This is akin to what happened in India.

However, neither the total population of India nor the rate of population growth at this stage was very high. The infant mortality rate was quite alarming—about 218 per thousand in contrast to the present infant mortality rate of 33 per thousand.

Though the population was starting to grow, the high infant mortality rate reflected severe public health issues of the time. A rate of 218 deaths per thousand live births indicates a very high risk of infants not surviving beyond their first year, demonstrating poor health care and social conditions. Today, improvements in health care and nutrition have dramatically reduced this figure to 33 per thousand, showing significant advancements in health services.

Think about a school where many students drop out before finishing the year. This is like the high infant mortality rate—it shows that children were not surviving long enough to become productive members of society. Modern schools aim to keep students until graduation, comparable to how improvements in health care keep babies alive and healthy.

Life expectancy was also very low—32 years in contrast to the present 69 years. In the absence of reliable data, it is difficult to specify the extent of poverty at that time but there is no doubt that extensive poverty prevailed in India during the colonial period which contributed to the worsening profile of India’s population.

Life expectancy being as low as 32 years suggests that many people didn't live past their childhood due to disease, malnutrition, and lack of access to health care. Improvements in medicine, sanitation, and nutrition are key reasons life expectancy has increased to 69 years now. The high levels of poverty during the colonial period exacerbated health problems, leading to a population that struggled to survive and develop.

Picture a small village where people live into their 30s at best due to illness and bad living conditions. Now, think about a town with doctors, sanitation, and better food; people live to see their grandchildren. This shift in life expectancy parallels how much the living conditions and health care improved for people over time.

The overall literacy level was less than 16 per cent. Out of this, the female literacy level was at a negligible low of about seven percent. Public health facilities were either unavailable to large chunks of the population or, when available, were highly inadequate.

With literacy rates below 16%, and only 7% for women, this paints a grim picture of education accessibility during that time. The lack of education contributes greatly to poverty because without basic reading and writing skills, it is harder to find good jobs or improve life conditions. Coupled with inadequate public health facilities, many people did not have access to clean water or basic medical care, which contributed to high rates of disease and death.

Imagine a community with no schools and clinics—children cannot learn to read and sick individuals do not receive help. This can easily trap the entire community in a cycle of poverty, just like what was happening in India during the colonial period.

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