India has 1.42 billion people – but some Modi allies want bigger families

India may be the world’s most populous country, with 1.42 billion people and challenges like high youth unemployment, but powerful allies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi are championing larger families to counter a declining fertility rate.Even though the United Nations projects India’s population would keep rising for ‌about four decades, peaking at around 1.7 billion, some policymakers and Hindu groups say the shift away from smaller families should begin now, including through government financial support.The country’s total fertility rate (TFR), the average number of children per woman, declined to 2 in the 2019/21 government assessment period, down from 3.4 in 1992/93, due to increasing use of contraceptives and rising education among females. A rate of 2.1 is required for the population to ⁠replace itself, the government estimates.