India?s population at 1.21 billion; UP most populous, Lakshwadeep least

India’s population has increased by 181 million in the past decade to touch a figure of 1.21 billion, according to the 2011 provisional Census report released on Thursday.

India’s population, despite a sharp decline in growth rate, is thus bigger than the combined population of USA, Indonesia, Brazil, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Of the 1,210.2 million people in India there are 623.7 million males and 586.5 million females, the Census said.

Conducted in two phases, it covered 640 districts and 5924 sub-districts.

The decadal population growth rate is 17.64 per cent at 2011 as against 21.15 per cent in 2001.

2001-11 is the first decade (with the exception of 1911-21) which had added lesser population that the previous decade.

India alone accounts for 17.5 per cent of the world population, coming second after China (19.4 per cent).

The US comes a distant third, accounting for 4.5 per cent of the world?s population.

The Census report was released by Registrar General & Census Commissioner C Chandramouli here.

He said there is a sharp decline in the population growth as per the latest Census.

Uttar Pradesh is the most populous state with the combined population of UP and Maharashtra exceeding the total population of USA, the report said.

Sikkim is the least populous of all states, with a population of just over 6 lakh, while Lakshwadeep had the least population among the Union Terrirtories with a population of 64,429.

The two most populous districts are Thane (Maharashtra) and North 24 Parganas (West Bengal), while the two least populous districts are Dibang Valley and Anjaw, both in Arunachal Pradesh.

The 2011 Census shows India’s sex ratio of 914 female against 1,000 male.

The 2011 report is the 15th Census conducted since 1872.