GUWAHATI, Sept 19: The Assam government on Monday said that it was working towards population control by creating awareness rather than imposing rules.
Education and empowerment of women is an important tool in this regard, Health minister Keshab Mahanta said in the assembly.
Replying to the matter of need for population control raised in the House by BJP legislator Hemanga Thakuria, Mahanta said the state government had come out with the Population and Women Empowerment Policy of Assam in 2017, which deals with the issue.
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He said that a piece of legislation for population control norms is also being formulated through wide consultations.
The minister mentioned the various directives and incentives by different government departments for their employees who follow a two-child norm, including fixing family size for panchayat election candidates.
Mahanta said that it has been observed that population growth has been higher in areas with low female literacy rate, especially in char (riverine) areas.
As such, the government is working on increasing literacy and awareness in such areas, he added.
“Our government does not want to impose on people, but we want to create awareness. Women empowerment is the basis of our Policy and we have received positive response from people,” the minister added.
BJP legislator Thakuria, raising the matter, urged the government for steps to control the population.
He claimed that several districts were witnessing abnormal population growth and it would lead to various problems, including issues of food security, for a state like Assam in the future. (PTI)
