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India to overtake China as world’s most populous nation – UN
India will overtake China as the world’s most populous country in the coming week, hitting almost 1.43 billion people, the United Nations said Monday.
“By the end of this month, India’s population is expected to reach 1,425,775,850 people, matching and then surpassing the population of mainland China,” the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs said.
Last week the UN’s annual State of World Population report had said the milestone would come by midyear 2023.
India is topping China due to both rapid growth in its own population and a decline in China’s after hitting 1.426 billion last year.
Regarded as the world’s most heavily populated country since the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th Century CE, China is expected to decline steadily to around one billion people by the end of this century, according to UN projections.
The China data does not include Taiwan, Hong Kong or Macau.
Meanwhile, India’s population “is virtually certain” to continue to grow in the coming decades, according to the United Nations.
The median UN projection sees India hitting 1.5 billion by mid-century — though officials stressed it could be much lower or higher.
China’s fall is heavily tied to decades of maintaining a strict one-child policy for married couples, which ended in 2016.
In addition, its slower growth is attributed to the rising cost of living and the growing number of Chinese women going into the workforce and seeking higher education.
Last year, China’s fertility rate fell to one of the lower levels in the world at 1.2 births per woman.
For India, which has taken much longer than China to get population growth under control, the fertility rate was 2.0 births per woman, just below the 2.1 replacement level.
Yet both countries had about the same level of fertility, just under six births per woman, in 1970, said John Wilmoth, director of the Population Division and the Economic and Social Affairs Department.
“It took three and a half decades for India to experience the same fertility reduction that occurred in China over just seven years during the 1970s,” he said.
A key reason for the difference was Beijing’s one-child policy; another was India’s lower human capital investment and slower economic growth during the 1970s and 1980s, according to the UN.
Wilmoth said that the reason the population report last week said India would surpass China by midyear was that it was using a projection made based on data last year.
The projection announced Monday is based on more recent data — though still a projection, Wilmoth stressed.
“The precise timing of when this crossover occurs is not known for sure and it will never be known,” he told reporters.
Jubilant supporters celebrated Donald Trump’s apparent victory in Florida early Wednesday as he claimed a return to the White House, despite most major news networks holding off on officially calling the race.
At an event in Palm Beach, Trump supporters reveled in the win projected by Fox News, cheering as the former president declared a “political victory that our country has never seen before.”
“I feel extraordinary,” said 68-year-old supporter Ted Sarvanis, dancing with arms in the air. “This is the greatest American political story in the history of the country.”
Joined by running mate J.D. Vance, Trump took the stage, celebrating his projected win. The atmosphere at the convention center was electric, with supporters sporting “Make America Great Again” caps and mingling in formal attire and Trump-themed clothing.
“I feel relieved. I was a little bit scared because you never know how things are going to turn out,” said Stacy Kurtz, 45.
In contrast, a far different scene unfolded for Vice President Kamala Harris’s supporters at Howard University in Washington, where they were hoping for a Democratic win.
As the night wore on and Trump gained electoral votes in key battleground states, disappointment swept through the crowd.
“I am scared, I am anxious now,” said Charlyn Anderson earlier in the evening.
Democratic watch parties in places like Atlanta and Pennsylvania grew somber as results rolled in, with Lynn Johnson, 65, expressing concern, “It’s going to be dangerous if he wins. I don’t feel safe.”
While Trump’s supporters celebrated a comeback, the mood among Democrats was marked by worry and disbelief.
“He’s a terrible candidate, so it just doesn’t make sense,” said Harris supporter Ken Brown.
The contrasting scenes highlighted the nation’s deep political divide on election night.
Israel’s President Isaac Herzog on Wednesday vowed to strengthen his country’s “ironclad bond” with the United States as he congratulated Donald Trump, who claimed victory in the US election.
“Congratulations to President @realDonaldTrump on your historic return to the White House… I look forward to working with you to strengthen the ironclad bond between our peoples, to build a future of peace and security for the Middle East, and to uphold our shared values,” Herzog said in a statement.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is hosting a summit of the BRICS inter-governmental organisation in the city of Kazan from Tuesday to Thursday.
The summit brings together 24 heads of state and government and is seen by Putin as part of an initiative to create a new world order to end the dominance of the U.S…
Prominent among the guests was Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Representatives from a total of 32 countries would attend.
The original members of BRICS are, Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa have been joined by the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Ethiopia and Iran among others.
The status of Saudi Arabia is yet unclear.
Russia, which currently chairs the organisation, announced that Saudi Arabia would be accepted as a member country at the start of the year.
But there has been no confirmation from Riyadh, and Saudi Arabia would be represented at the summit by its foreign minister.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said Saudi Arabia’s status would be cleared up at the summit.
Turkey is to participate as an interested party.
Speaking ahead of the summit, Putin said a central aim would be promoting financial cooperation and providing an alternative to the SWIFT network, through which international payments are routed.
Many Russian banks were banned from the network after its invasion of Ukraine.
Setting up a joint bank is also on the BRICS agenda.
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