ABSTRACT
There are growing numbers of people who view population policies as dangerously close to being racist, sexist and imperialist, as well as anti-poor. These individuals and groups are equally concerned about the health of the nation and the health of its people and are asking some extremely uncomfortable questions for which there are no easy answers. This chapter discusses the politically charged nature of opinions on population and links population growth to the circumstance in which women live. India was the first country in the developing world to formulate its national population policy in 1951 with the First Five Year Plan. It was centrally planned, financed and monitored, and implemented at the state and local levels in a typically top-down manner. It is well known that maternal mortality in India is shockingly, embarrassingly high, worse than in many poorer nations. It is also well known that 20 per cent of it is related to iron deficiency anaemia and its complications.
