FD: Concerns about India’s increasing population were once addressed with the slogan “Hum Do Hamare Do” (We Two, Our Two), encouraging couples to have only one child. However, a community in India is now facing a declining population and is urging people to have more children. The Kutch Kadva Patidar Samaj (KKPS) in Gujarat has introduced a scheme offering a fixed deposit of 50,000 rupees to parents who have a third child.
The KKPS community is concerned about the decreasing population within their group and believes that having larger families will help maintain their numbers. They are worried that if the current trend of having fewer children continues, their community will shrink significantly. As a response, they have devised a plan to incentivize couples to have a third child and have also promised to honor the parents of the third child in a public ceremony.
The initiative aims to rectify population imbalances related to caste, religion, and age, while encouraging younger members to have more children. Javerilal Ramani, the vice president of the South Gujarat zone of KKPS, explained that the idea for the scheme arose from observing that many young couples in the community were either not having children or limiting themselves to one child. By offering fixed deposits, they hope to motivate individuals to expand their families.
With a current population of approximately 17,000 in South Gujarat, the KKPS is witnessing a decline, prompting the decision to introduce this scheme to reverse the trend. The community leaders are eager for more young people to take advantage of this opportunity.
The Kutch Kadva Patidar community of South Gujarat has a population of approximately 17,000. Community leaders say the population is steadily declining. Ramesh Parasia, vice president of the All India Kutch Kadva Patidar Community, said that several welfare schemes are already underway for the community.