When this book was originally published in 1989 here had been virtually no studies of the country's historical demography. This volume was significant for 3 reasons: it contributed greatly to the knowledge of India's population history; it had major implications for the work of social and economic historians of India; and lastly the Indian context provides an excellent laboratory in which to investigate certain large-scale demographic phenomena - among others the experience of bubonic plague, influenza, cholera and famine.

Whilst fertility rates in the post-industrial world have fallen below replacement levels, the birthrate and survival rates in the developing world are escalating rapidly. Changes in agricultural technology, food production and consumption, as well as the global economic system itself, have created an unstable global food production system. This text examines recent trends in food production and assesses the prospects for feeding humanity to the year 2020. Synthesizing a mass of statistical data and drawing on case material from Africa, Asia, Latin America, Europe, North America and the Middle East, the book suggests that food production in most world regions has kept ahead of population growth. Considering likely future trends in climate, land resources, water availability, farm imputs and technnological innovation, the author argues that there should be no insurmountable problems in meeting the world's volume of food demand to the year 2020, and questions the current pessimism voiced about future food prospects.

This book deals with the important subject of famine demography. Drawing together case studies of famines in the historical past and more recent times it tries to answer questions such as: To what extent did famines control human population growth in the past? Who dies most in famines? What are the principal causes of famine mortality? When do people die in famines? And what factors influence the volume of famine mortality? The implications of famines for human fertility and migration are also investigated.

Twenty-First Century India is the first study of India's development giving a fully integrated account of population and development. It is built on new projections of the population for fifty years from the Census of 2001. India's population then had already passed 1 billion. Twenty-five years later it will exceed 1.4 billion, and will almost certainly pass 1.5 billion by mid-century. The projections incorporate for the first time both inter-state migration and the role of HIV/AIDS. They also show India's urban future, with close to half a billion urban inhabitants by the year 2026. The implications of this population growth are then traced out in a range of modelling and analytical work. Growing numbers are found to complicate the task of achieving widespread education in a number of India's states, while other states are already experiencing declines in their school-age population. Demographic growth also contributes to poverty, and increasing divergence in social conditions among the states. As population growth slows in the country overall, the labour force continues to grow relatively fast, with difficult consequences for employment. But national economic growth could be accelerated by the 'demographic bonus' of the declining proportion of dependents to workers in the population. The book is reasonably optimistic about India's food prospects: the country can continue to feed itself. It can also enjoy higher levels of energy use, manufacturing, and modern forms of transport, while experiencing less chemical pollution. India's cities can become cleaner and healthier places to live. Perhaps the most difficult environmental issue, and the one most strongly related to population growth, is water. Some states also face severe pressures on common property resources. A policy chapter concludes the book. India's future problems are large, but in principle manageable. However, whether the country will actually achieve sustainable development for all is another matter.

Twenty-First Century India is the first study of India's development giving a fully integrated account of population and development. It is built on new projections of the population for fifty years from the Census of 2001. India's population then had already passed 1 billion. Twenty-five years later it will exceed 1.4 billion, and will almost certainly pass 1.5 billion by mid-century. The projections incorporate for the first time both inter-state migration and the role of HIV/AIDS. They also show India's urban future, with close to half a billion urban inhabitants by the year 2026. The implications of this population growth are then traced out in a range of modelling and analytical work. Growing numbers are found to complicate the task of achieving widespread education in a number of India's states, while other states are already experiencing declines in their school-age population. Demographic growth also contributes to poverty, and increasing divergence in social conditions among the states. As population growth slows in the country overall, the labour force continues to grow relatively fast, with difficult consequences for employment. But national economic growth could be accelerated by the 'demographic bonus' of the declining proportion of dependents to workers in the population. The book is reasonably optimistic about India's food prospects: the country can continue to feed itself. It can also enjoy higher levels of energy use, manufacturing, and modern forms of transport, while experiencing less chemical pollution. India's cities can become cleaner and healthier places to live. Perhaps the most difficult environmental issue, and the one most strongly related to population growth, is water. Some states also face severe pressures on common property resources. A policy chapter concludes the book. India's future problems are large, but in principle manageable. However, whether the country will actually achieve sustainable development for all is another matter.

A Population History of India provides an account of the size and characteristics of India's population stretching from when hunter-gatherer homo sapiens first arrived in the country - very roughly seventy thousand years ago - until the modern day. It is a period during which the population grew from just a handful of people to reach almost 1.4 billion, and a time when the fact of death had a huge influence on the nature of life. This book considers the millennia that were characterized by hunting and gathering, the Indus valley civilization, the opening-up of the Ganges river basin, and the eras of the Delhi Sultanate, the Mughal Empire, British colonial rule, and India since independence. By observing India through a demographic lens, A Population History of India: From the First Modern People to the Present Day addresses mortality, fertility, the size of cities, patterns of migration, and the multitude of famines, epidemics, invasions, wars, and other events that affected the population. It draws together research from archaeology, cultural studies, economics, epidemiology, linguistics, history, and politics to understand the likely trajectory of India's population in comparison to the trends that applied to Europe and China, and to reveal a surprising and dramatic story.

The demographic transition and its related effects of population growth, fertility decline and ageing populations are fraught with problems and controversy. When discussed in relation to the global south and the modern project of development, the questions and answers become more problematic. "Population and Development" expertly guides the reader through the demographic transition's origins in the Enlightenment and Europe, through to the rest of the world. While the phenomenon continues to cause unsustainable population growth with disastrous economic and environmental implications, the author examines how its processes have underlain previous periods of sustained economic growth; helped to liberate women from the domestic domain; and contributed greatly to the rise of modern democracy. This accessible and expert analysis will enable any student or expert in development studies to understand complex and vital demographic theory.

The demographic transition and its related effects of population growth, fertility decline and ageing populations are fraught with problems and controversy. When discussed in relation to the global south and the modern project of development, the questions and answers become more problematic. "Population and Development" expertly guides the reader through the demographic transition's origins in the Enlightenment and Europe, through to the rest of the world. While the phenomenon continues to cause unsustainable population growth with disastrous economic and environmental implications, the author examines how its processes have underlain previous periods of sustained economic growth; helped to liberate women from the domestic domain; and contributed greatly to the rise of modern democracy. This accessible and expert analysis will enable any student or expert in development studies to understand complex and vital demographic theory.

Whilst fertility rates in the post-industrial world have fallen below replacement levels, the birthrate and survival rates in the developing world are escalating rapidly. Changes in agricultural technology, food production and consumption, as well as the global economic system itself, have created an unstable global food production system. This text examines recent trends in food production and assesses the prospects for feeding humanity to the year 2020. Synthesizing a mass of statistical data and drawing on case material from Africa, Asia, Latin America, Europe, North America and the Middle East, the book suggests that food production in most world regions has kept ahead of population growth. Considering likely future trends in climate, land resources, water availability, farm imputs and technnological innovation, the author argues that there should be no insurmountable problems in meeting the world's volume of food demand to the year 2020, and questions the current pessimism voiced about future food prospects.