All these are guess work. We have no real count of the people breathing at this moment on the Indian earth. A guesstimate is, there are close to 1.5 billion.
That’s the statisticians’ nightmare. It took several millennia for us to number one billion. Now in a quarter century we have added half a billion. We will be two billion in still shorter time.
Our last headcount was in 2011, and the next due in 2021 when Covid came in the way. Covid has since gone; we celebrated three more Diwalis, Eids, Guru Purnimas, Christmases and a G-20 summit, held a general election and several assembly rounds but are yet to hold the headcount. Now the home office tells us— stand up, and be counted next year.
This story is from the November 17, 2024 edition of THE WEEK India.
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This story is from the November 17, 2024 edition of THE WEEK India.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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