India, Sept. 1 -- The world's most populous country is in a demographic quagmire. India's birth rate is falling at a baffling pace. The dip is being grudgingly celebrated as the ultimate population control success. For the world, which is seeing a similar decline in birth rate, the news from India has symbolised a defusing of the proverbial population bomb that had been ticking ever since the 18th century English cleric-economist Thomas Malthus propounded his ideas on the dangers of unchecked population growth.

The recently released sixth round of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-6) puts India's total fertility rate (TFR) at 2.0. This is below the replacement level of 2.1, which is the average number of children a woman needs to h...