With nearly 1.5 billion people, India is the world’s most populous nation. That number is expected to grow to about 1.7 billion before it begins falling, about 40 years from now.
Behind these numbers are the stories of millions of couples who decided to start or expand their families, as well as the stories of women who had few choices about whether, when or how often they became pregnant.
In 1960, when India’s population was about 436 million, women had an average of six children. Back then, women had less control over their bodies and lives than they do today. Fewer than one in four used some form of contraception, and fewer than one in two had attended primary school.
But in the years that followed, girls attained more education, access to reproductive health care improved, and more and more women gained a voice in the decisions that affected their lives. Today, more than nine in 10 girls complete primary school and move on to secondary education. Nearly seven in 10 women use some form of contraception, and about eight in 10 make their own decisions about sex and health care.
The average woman in India today has about two children.
While women in India—and every other country—have more rights and choices today than their mothers or grandmothers did, they still have a long way to go before they are empowered to have the number of children they want—if any—when they want them.
The stories of three generations of women from the same family in Bihar show just how much has changed in India over the past 65 years.
Saraswati Devi, age 64
In 1976, Saraswati Devi was married at age 16. By the time she was 30, she had given birth to five sons. She never thought twice about having more—or fewer—children. All the other women in her village had about that many, and if you had fewer, people thought you were sick, Saraswati recalled. That was a time when large families were seen as both a blessing and an economic necessity.
Having children then was considered “God’s gift”, she says. “My mother-in-law always said, ‘The more children you have, the more hands there are to work in the fields.’”
“We didn’t know about contraceptives back then,” she says, adding that conversations around spacing pregnancies or desired family size were rare. “We didn’t know how to delay or prevent pregnancies, and we were too afraid to ask.” Pressure from friends, neighbors and especially her mother-in-law had an outsized influence on how many children to have, she says. “I wished for daughters, but I only had sons. It is good to have both. I love my children, but they are all busy with their own lives now. If I had daughters, I feel they would have taken better care of me in my old age.”
“When I wanted to stop having children, my mother-in-law insisted that I continue, and I could not disobey her.” If she could do it all over again, Saraswati says, she would have had fewer children.
Anita Devi, age 42
Anita Devi, Saraswati’s daughter-in-law, married at 18 in the late 1990s. Unlike her mother-in-law, Anita knew about and could have obtained family planning from the health workers who visited her village. Nevertheless, she ended up having six children: four daughters and two boys.
She had wanted to stop having children after the birth of her fourth daughter, but she was under pressure from her family to give birth to a son, so she again became pregnant. “My husband and mother-in-law wanted more children, especially a son,” Anita says. “I felt exhausted, but I had little say in the matter.”
“I initially wanted only one or two children, just one girl and one boy,” she says. “We are poor, and raising a large family is difficult.” “But talking about family planning was not easy in my family, and my husband was against contraception.”
“Despite our struggles, I am happy with my family,” she says. “All my children have received some education. I divide my time between working in the home and helping my husband on the farm.”
Pooja Kumari, age 26
Anita’s daughter Pooja Kumari graduated from university before marrying at 22. She had her first child at 23. In the following three years, she used contraceptives provided by Accredited Social Health Activists, or ASHA didis—health frontline workers responsible for distributing contraceptives and delivering community health services—and recently decided to have a second child.
“My husband and I have decided to have only two children,” Pooja says. “We want to raise them well, provide them with a good education, and ensure a secure future for our family. With limited financial resources, we believe a small family is best.”
“I want to give my children a better life, while also prioritising my health. I can’t do that if I have too many kids.”
Pooja says that after she gives birth, she plans to work and contribute financially to her home. “My husband supports my ambitions, and together, we are planning for a stable future.”
Pooja says she learned about rights and reproductive health through Raatri Chaupals, or nighttime community assemblies, where villagers gather to learn about health and rights through films and discussions, guided by local health workers. These meetings boosted her confidence to have conversations with her husband about the number and timing of pregnancies. Pooja is part of a new generation of Indian women who now have the power to realize their fertility goals.
