Consider the following statements about the demographic condition of India during the colonial period:
(A) Before 1921, India was in the first stage of demographic transition.
(B) The second stage of demographic transition began after 1921, and in this stage India’s rate of population growth was very high.
(C) The census of 1881 showed that India’s population was growing evenly.
(D) After the census of 1881, census operations were carried out every ten years.
(E) Water-borne and air-borne diseases were rampant because public health facilities were unavailable or highly inadequate.
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → (A), (D) and (E) only
(A) Before 1921, India was in the first stage of demographic transition. — Correct. 1921 marks the move from the first stage to the second.
(B) The second stage of demographic transition began after 1921, and in this stage India’s rate of population growth was very high. — Incorrect. The second stage did begin after 1921. But neither the total population nor its rate of growth was very high at this stage.
(C) The census of 1881 showed that India’s population was growing evenly. — Incorrect. The 1881 census revealed the unevenness in India’s population growth.
(D) After the census of 1881, census operations were carried out every ten years. — Correct. A census was held every ten years.
(E) Water-borne and air-borne diseases were rampant because public health facilities were unavailable or highly inadequate. — Correct. Poor public health let these diseases spread.
NCERT (2026-27): “1.6 Demographic Condition Various details about the population of British India were first collected through a census in 1881. Though suffering from certain limitations, it revealed the unevenness in India’s population growth. Subsequently, every ten years such census operations were carried out. Before 1921, India was in the first stage of demographic transition. The second stage of transition began after 1921. However, neither the total population of India nor the rate of population growth at this stage was very high. The various social development indicators were also not quite encouraging. The overall literacy level was less than 16 per cent. Out of this, the female literacy level was at a negligible low of about seven per cent. Public health facilities were either unavailable to large chunks of population or, when available, were highly inadequate. Consequently, water and air-borne diseases were rampant and took a huge toll on life. …” |