Population Explosion

ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES
Lesson 30: Human population and environment

Population Explosion

Population explosion is defined as the condition of having more people than can live on the earth in comfort, happiness and health and still live the world a fit place for future generation. World population is expected to increase to 8 billions by the year 2025. At present China has the highest population and India is the second most populated country. In India U.P., Bihar, M.P. and Rajasthan have more growth rate and less literacy rate. The rate of population growth is 21.34% in India while M.P. and Rajasthan together have 49% as the growth rate. India’s literacy rate is 65.38%. Kerala, Tamil nadu, A.P. and Goa had lowered their growth rate.

  • Sex ratio in U.P. is 882 women/1000 men, Bihar – 912 women/1000 men, Kerala – 1040 women/men, H.P. – 996 women/men.
  • Andhra Pradesh has 75.7 million population, population density is 275/sq.km, sex ratio – 978 women/men, per centage growth is 13.8%, literacy rate is 61.11%.

Problems related to Population Explosion:

  • Famine in areas where growth is more and food production is less.
  • Political unrest due to great disparities in availability of resources (jobs, goods, food).
  • Environmental degradation by poor agricultural practices.
  • Increase in pollution of air, water, land etc.
  • Extinctions due to the conversion of natural ecosystems to managed agricultural ecosystems.
  • Destructive effects of exploitation of natural resources (strip mining, oil spills, ground water mining).
  • Inadequate housing.

It leads to P3 syndrome i.e. population, poverty and pollution


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Last modified: Friday, 6 January 2012, 6:45 AM