All the above options have been exercised in different countries. China used coercion by going for one child policy, having legal restrictions on children, strong economic disincentives and through birth planning at the grassroots level. However, in democratic setups it is seldom the preferred or effective option. Indian political parties have learnt that even the indication of coercion in family planning is enough to bring about a change in the regimes. Initially, developing countries preferred the second option and those countries which went for population policy implemented family planning programme on a voluntary basis. As time passed and evaluation reports of family planning programmes became available (and also with improved theorisation of mechanisms of fertility decline), the governments felt the need for beyond family planning measures.
FAMILY PLANNING
Family planning measures refer to all those strategies which aim at the promotion of contraception, sterilization and/or legitimate abortion as part of the government policy. They include having a clear cut family planning policy and involvement of all government departments in implementing it, provision of resources, creation of facilities at the grassroot levels and launching awareness campaigns for building small family size norm. The state pursuing the family planning programme has to take several decisions regarding quantum of resources to be pumped into various components of the programme; organization structures; family planning methods, supply and outlets; means of communication; and ways of monitoring and evaluation through which mid term and end term corrections may be made in different projects, launched as part of the family planning programme. Engineering demographic goals in a rather traditional society has been a very challenging task. In the 1950s when family planning programmes were launched there was no help from history. The developed countries rarely used family planning programme for reducing fertility levels. It was rather a strong motivation on the part of couples that caused a declining trend in fertility, despite disapproval from the state and church. |
