DMPQ-Decline in Child Population.Comment.

The 2011 Census is the first one in many decades which counted less absolute number of children in the 0-6 age group. Compared to 2001 Census count of 164 million children, there were 159 million children in 2011, or there were 5 million fewer children in India. This is evident in the share of children in the total population, which declined from 16 percent in 2001 to 13.1 percent in 2011. Among the major states, the only exceptions were Bihar and Jammu & Kashmir, which reported some absolute increase in their child population. In Kerala and Tamil Nadu, children aged 0-6 constitute less than 10 percent of the population but in Rajasthan, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar, children’s share in the total population is almost 18 percent. The decline in child population reflects decline in fertility; total fertility rate in India has come down from an average of 3.1 children born per woman in 2001 to 2.7 in 2009.