South Asia 1974: An Overview

1. The 1974 population of the populous countries in South Asia is estimated at about 770 million (India, 600 million; Bangladesh, 76 million; Pakistan, 69 million; Sri Lanka, 14 million; Nepal, 12 million). This represents more than onequarter of the population of the developing world and more than one-third of those residing in Asia. Consequently, the outcome of efforts to deal with rapid population growth on a global basis depends to a considerable extent on the performance of population programs in South Asia. 2. Population growth rates in these South Asian countries range from about 2 to 3 percent per annum. Within these countries, however, there are wide variations between urban and rural areas, social classes, and regions. Overall, the…