World Population Day is an annual event, observed on July 11 every year, which seeks to raise awareness of global population issues. The event was established by the Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme in 1989. It was inspired by the public interest in Five Billion Day on July 11, 1999 approximately the date on which the world’s population reached five billion people.

It is estimated that global population will swell to 9 billion by the year 2050. Most of this growth will occur in urban areas and emerging economies in Asia, Latin America, and sub-Saharan Africa. Cities such as Delhi, India; Sao Paolo, Brazil; and Lagos, Nigeria will become the largest in the world, while rural areas will lose inhabitants.

The idea behind the celebration of World Population Day is to ensure the survival of our environment which could only be possible by controlling the population. The hungry world cannot be fed until and unless the growth of its resources and the growth of its population come into balance. At present, at least one billion people around the world do not get enough to eat. A nearly equal amount of 1.4 billion are overweight, and can suffer from various health problems such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease.

At the same time, just creating people who can earn, who can invent, is not going to help the world in itself unless people become holistic, become united with their own inner spiritual nature and act with dynamic compassion.

In fact, in 1989, the Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme recommended that, in order to focus attention on the urgency and importance of population issues in the context of overall development plans and programmes and the need to find solutions for these issues, 11 July should be observed by the international community as World Population Day.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has given a message on World Population Day – “When we devote attention and resources to the education, health and wellbeing of adolescent girls, they will become an even greater force for positive change in society that will have an impact for generations to come. On this World Population Day, let us pledge to support adolescent girls to realize their potential and contribute to our shared future.”

Every year, WPD is celebrated with new theme to create awareness among the people and this year, the theme on World Population Day is “Focus is on Adolescent Pregnancy”. Thus, there is a need to raise awareness of the issue of adolescent pregnancy in the hopes of delivering a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every child birth is safe, and every young person’s potential is fulfilled.

About 16 million girls under age 18 give birth each year. Another 3.2 million undergo unsafe abortions. The vast majority – 90 per cent — of the pregnant adolescents in the developing world are married. But for far too many of these girls, pregnancy has little to do with informed choice. Often it is a consequence of discrimination, rights violations (including child marriage), inadequate education or sexual coercion.

A number of organizations all over the world are all taking action to prepare for the challenges presented by global population growth through research, advocacy, education, and community outreach.

No doubt, India has set itself the goal of attaining population stabilization by 2045, there is a need to focus on this aspect by organizing awareness seminars and making it a part of education, to make future safe for survival on this planet earth. Both, government and the people have to shake hands sincerely to meet the challenge of threats like lust for son which is disturbing the gender ration in the country, female foeticides apart from rapid increase in population.