All of the above have their own compulsions and priorities. Let us start from Bihar first. A few years back, Mr. Laloo prasad Yadav was seen correcting his statement before the media. "I did not say that don't produce more children. I say that if you can feed them, then produce them as many as you need."

Here I will not comment about the statement or it's morality as such (that will be taken care of in jalikati.com), but here I try to highlight the root cause of this menace called population exposion. Since childhood we have been reading and hearing that some day the 'population explosion' will occur. Before most of us could understand what that term exactly means, I think the time has already come. At least I have the reason to believe so.

Year 2009 has seen the first draught for the country in the last 22 years. Last draught was recorded in 1987. Since 1988, it has been normal to high rainfall every year right till the year 2008. In 2009 too, it was not the situation of a complete draught. It was a partial one and the rainfall was a bit late instead of being completely absent. But look at the scarcity and the price rise! It has crossed all the limits. This proves that we are on the brink of exhausting our resources. That we have been managing it only by the God's grace all those years and when He showed a little misery in giving us water (don't you think that too is our own deed of global warming and all?), this draught exposed all our capacities. It is so that the number of mouths we have to feed has been equivalent to how much we could produce under 'ideal conditions'. This draught may have told us that we are not producing enough, hasn't it also told us that we have been producing the children 'more than enough'?

Another argument is that the rise in prices is due to the hoarding and black marketing. Very true that is, and we shall raise it in the other forums like jalikati.com etc. but as the discussion goes on here, we must concentrate only on how population is affecting the price-rise. Hoarding too can be beneficial as well as can occur only when there is 'not enough' quantity or the quantity is 'just enough'.

So the case is now proved that the 'just enough' stage has arrived for India and it is the time to alarm. So who owns the responsibility? Government has been doing the stuff of family planning in it's hospitals and advertising it also. It has worked but not upto the desired levels. What the politicians do is that I have already written. Now the fourth pillar of democracy, the media, which is becoming more and more powerful these years with the advent of technology has according to me, a great role to play in this regard. More so because it has the approach right upto the bedrooms. Bedrooms of not just the elite but deep inside the slums too. Internet is yet to find a place that deep but the televisions has got it. Sadly, the private TV channels have not taken up their responsibility. (Is it the case for an article in idioticmedia.in ?). For example, a few years ago there was a story in media which found the top slot. story was that of a cobler who educated his son upto graduation (or whatever it was) and then was cursing the Government that his son was not getting a Govt. job. Media was also projecting him as Mr. Bechara throughout that day. The reporters were shouting in their typical style that the cobler is now discouraged to educate his other 4 children!

But now seeing the prices of pulses and sugar , as they popularly say in hindi, "aate daal ka bhao", even if the parents of a new born 'extra' child are insulted in public, I don't think this is outrage. Here at Newsjyoti, I strongly advocate and fight for all that is just but at the same time oppose tooth-and-nail whatever one does in 'personal capacity' but harmful for the others. It is the time that we start strongly opposing the third child in every family, behave as 'so-so' with the second child, honour those who decide having only one child and.... I can't imagine many people who decide 'not to have a baby at all' in the larger interest of the society and in the interest of that child also who will be born in this cruel and ever-deteriorating world!

Trust me, that too is possible. Many years ago, when I did not even understand these matters deeply, I had seen the interview of a couple on 'Doordarshan'. The couple which though was medically fit, had decided not to have any child ever. One really must salute such people.

As far as throwing insult at those irresponsible people increasing population unnecessarily, some may find my statement 'outrageous' (and I am ready to withdraw it if they insist), but some people even advocate trying of such people in the court of law. As far as those people (and I am not talking of old times, but the 21st century) are concerned who become father of 2+ nice daughters but keep on producing children after children in pursuit of a son, that too in this modern age and new era, I am sorry to say that I advocate hanging them by the.....

It is the age to count on the daughters for anything and everything and every sane person knows it. Now those who do not oblige the nation by restraining themselves will find them isolated. Yes, they are 'eating into' your pockets and they are 'eating from' your pockets. This can be no longer their 'personal matter'. We should ask and demand the Govt. to formulate regulatory laws regarding this and producing more than the permissible number of children should be made cognizable offence. The govt. should have the right to get any 'third child' aborted before birth. The matter should no longer be 'personal'. It is not only the parents who bear the burden of bringing up the child, but the whole society and the whole country bears the burden. Will I be wrong if I say that the 'whole world' bears the burden in the present environmental circumstances?
(By Jyoti Narula)