World Population Day has, over the years, evolved from being a reminder about population trends to a reaffirmation of reproductive rights, informed choice and human dignity. 

This year's theme, "Realising the hopes and aspirations of young people: today and for the future", reinforces that evolution. It shifts the focus from demographic targets to the hopes, aspirations and opportunities of young people.

Ironically, in India, the public discourse appears to be moving in the opposite direction. Calls from some quarters for larger families and discussions around a three-child norm have once again shifted attention to fertility.

The renewed interest in larger families is not driven solely by demographic concerns. It is unfolding against the backdrop of the proposed delimitation of parliamentary constituencies and the continuing debate over the relationship between population, political representation and the distribution of public resources. 

States that successfully reduced fertility through investments in education, healthcare and voluntary family planning fear that they may be disadvantaged if population becomes the principal determinant of parliamentary representation and fiscal allocations. Whether these apprehensions ultimately prove justified or not, they have reopened a debate that many believed India had moved beyond.

But if political representation and resource allocation are the issues, should the........

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