China’s Family Planning Association, responsible for the government’s population and fertility measures, wants to encourage women to marry and have children to boost the country’s falling birth rate.
The UN agency's report also warns that population statistics should not be misused to target any specific group and cites the example of India in this context.
With India set to become the world s most populous nation, Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Thursday urged people to look at parameters such as GDP, unemployment and annual inflation as he pointed out that India was lagging behind its neighbour China on those counts.
India was the largest contributor to the 8 billion (177 million) and will surpass China, which was the second largest contributor (73 million) as the world's most populous nation by 2023.
India's claim for permanent membership in the UN Security Council may get strengthened if it surpasses China and becomes the world's most populous nation in 2023, according to a top UN population official.