India overtakes China to become world’s most populous country

• Follow

India is now the world’s most populous country. It surpassed China to become the world’s most populous nation with 142.86 crore people, according to the latest UN data. China has a population of 142.57 crore, the UN world population dashboard showed. According to a new UNFPA report, 25% of India’s population is in the age group of 0-14 years, 18%  in 10 to 19 group, 26% in the 10 to 24 years bracket, 68% in 15 to 64 group, and 7% above 65 years. Estimates by different agencies have suggested that India’s population is likely to rise for nearly three decades before peaking at 165 crore and then start declining. The population demographics of India vary from state to state. Kerala and Punjab have an ageing population while Bihar and Uttar Pradesh have a young population. Andrea Wojnar, the representative for UNPF India said that “India’s 1.4 billion people must be seen as 1.4 billion opportunities”.