India To Surpass China As Most Populous Nation- UN

India’s population is expected to surpass China by the end of April says the UN.

India will be the world’s most populous country hitting almost 1.43 billion people and eclipsing an ageing China, says the United Nations.

“By the end of this month, India’s population is expected to reach 1,425,775,850 people, matching and then surpassing the population of mainland China,” the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs said in a statement on Monday.

Last week, the UN’s annual State of World Population report said the milestone would come by midyear 2,023 when it will have 2.9 million people more than China.

The Indian government, which has not done a census since 2011 and delayed the 2021 one due to the pandemic, has not officially commented on the UN estimates.

“The timing of when India surpasses China in population will likely be revised once India conducts its next census,” director of the UN population division, John Wilmoth said at a news conference at UN headquarters in New York City.

India and China are neighbours and have a complicated relationship, including robust trade ties and a long-running border dispute. The United States and its allies increasingly see India, the world’s largest democracy, as a counterweight to China.

Aljazeera/Shakirat Sadiq