Demography Commission Example Of Planning Ahead: PM Modi In Interview

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that a demographic commission will be set up to address the future challenges posed by the population growth in India.

In an interview with TimesNow, PM Modi detailed his government's commitment to long-term national planning beyond the immediate electoral considerations.

"I don't prepare for elections. Neither do I think about elections, nor do I plan my work with election timetable in mind. I think about where this Nation will be when it turns 100 years old, when we have reached a century of freedom. And this doesn't happen overnight," PM Modi said.

Explaining the rationale behind the commission, PM Modi highlighted the global concerns regarding demographic shifts and the ageing of populations.

"I said in the Budget, now you may call it a trailer, that we will institute a commission on demography. What's this about? See, around the world many Nations are worried over ageing of a large portion of their population. I don't want that in 2047 there is no planning for our elderly. We are young now, but someday we'll grow old," he said.

"It's the government's job to think about it today. I think about it - when the youth of today grow old around 2047, that they aren't helpless. We need to plan for this. I want to work at this level, with that thought process. I mentioned it in the Budget, the media may not have picked it up," he added.

In February, while presenting the interim budget, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced that a high-powered committee will be set up for "extensive consideration" of challenges due to population growth and demographic changes.

"The government will form a high-powered committee for an extensive consideration of challenges arising from fast population growth and demographic changes," FM Nirmala Sitharaman had said.

"The committee will be mandated to make recommendations for addressing these challenges comprehensively in relation to the goal of 'Viksit Bharat' (Developed India)," she added.

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