Mobilising support for population education.

In India varying social customs and beliefs favor large family sizes which disfavor the adoption of modern methods of family planning. There is however clear recognition in India of the problem of excessive population growth but no consensus on how the problem should be solved. The Family Planning Program was introduced as a part of the developmental strategy by the government in 1952. The First Five Year Plan Document presented to Parliament in December 1952 referred to a program for family limitation and population control the origins of the first official family planning program in the world by any nation. The program gained momentum in terms of allocation of financial and human resources in successive plans and the government adopted various measures to popularize the movement among its people. A holistic approach to reach the goal of a balanced population growth reaching the goals of health for all and a net reproduction rate of unity by the year 2000 the role of nongovernmental organizations community participation the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development and using traditional practitioners in family welfare programs are discussed.