Choose the incorrect statement from the given statements.

The rate of natural increase or the growth rate of population refers to the difference between the birth rate and the death rate. Growth rate can never be negative. When the difference between the birth rate and the death rate is zero or very small then we say that the population has "stabilised" or has reached the "replacement level". None of these

Growth rate can never be negative.

Growth rate can be negative. The rate of natural increase or the growth rate of population refers to the difference between the birth rate and the death rate. When this difference is zero (or, in practice, very small) then we say that the population has ‘stabilised’, or has reached the ‘replacement level’, which is the rate of growth required for new generations to replace the older ones that are dying out. Sometimes, societies can experience a negative growth rate – that is, their fertility levels are below the replacement rate. This is true of many countries and regions in the world today, such as Japan, Russia, Italy and Eastern Europe. On the other hand, some societies experience very high growth rates, particularly when they are going through the demographic transition.