Overpopulation

This refers to the editorial ‘Economic report’ (August 30). One thinks that it’s easy to blame the government for inflation or for increasing poverty levels. There is no doubt that without the people’s active participation, no country can prosper. In Pakistan’s case, the only hurdle that the country presently faces is the nearly non-existent concept of family planning. While all neighbouring countries restricted their population growth rate, Pakistan continues to face the problem of overpopulation. Because of this problem, Pakistan, which was once a food surplus state, has now become an importer of food items. This is the main reason for increasing inflation. Had Pakistan’s total population been somewhere near 150 million, there wouldn’t have been food scarcity, unemployment etc.

The government is responsible for creating awareness among people about the problems of overpopulation and the benefits of family planning.

Ravi Kumar Emani

Hyderabad, India