The 'Population Explosion' happens in which of the following stages?

The correct answer is Option (3) → Second stage

Option (1) First Stage — Incorrect. The first stage, in an underdeveloped society, has low growth: both the death rate and the birth rate are very high, so the difference between them is small.

Option (2) Third stage — Incorrect. The third and last stage, in a developed society, also has low growth, because both rates have come down considerably.

Option (3) Second stage — Correct. Between the two lies a transitional stage, from a backward to an advanced society, with very high rates of population growth. This ‘population explosion’ happens because death rates are brought down quickly through disease control, public health and better nutrition, while society takes longer to alter its reproductive behaviour.

Option (4) Developed stage — Incorrect. The theory has no separate ‘developed stage’; its three stages are named only first, second and third. A developed society is in the third stage, where growth is low because both the death rate and the birth rate have come down, so it is not the stage of population explosion.