On Friday, the Uttar Pradesh State Law Commission released the first draft of the population control bill on its official website and has sought suggestions from the public till July 19, 2021.
The draft titled The Uttar Pradesh Population (Control, Stabilization and Welfare) Bill, 2021 has been shared on the UPSLC website which says, “The State Law Commission, UP is working on control, stabilisation, and welfare of the population of the state and has prepared a draft bill.”
Penalties For The Violators
- Cannot contest elections
- Cannot apply for government jobs under State government
- Debarred from increments in government services
- Ineligible to receive a government subsidy
- Limit of ration card units up to four members
- Ineligible to avail of government-sponsored schemes
Incentives of Adopting Two Children Policy
- Two additional increments during the entire service
- Subsidy towards the purchase of plot or house site or built house
- Rebate on charges for utilities such as water, electricity, house tax, etc
- Maternity or paternity leave of 12 months, with full salary and allowances
- Free health care facility and insurance coverage to spouse\
- 3% increase in EPF
Incentives For Single Child
- 4 additional increments
- Free health care insurance to the child till 20 years
- Preference to child in admission
- Free education up to graduation level
A couple under poverty line, with a single child and voluntary sterilisation operation, will be eligible to get a lump-sum amount from the government.
- ₹ 80,000 if it’s a boy.
- ₹ 1,00,000 if it’s a girl.
Exceptions Are There
- In circumstances of multiple births in a second pregnancy, or having more than two children in the first pregnancy.
- Not applicable to parents who adopt a third child after having two children conceived from a marriage
- Parents who had a third child after having one disabled child are exempted.
- Parents who lose one or both of their children and conceive a third child will also not be considered as violators.
Policy For Polygamous and Polyandrous Marriages
As per the population control bill, each couple will be counted as a separate unit for the purpose of calculation of the cumulative number of children in case of polygamous and polyandrous marriages. However, the person who is common in the marriages will be in contravention of the law if they cumulatively parent more than two children from all marriages. The bill is alleged to be targeting the Muslim community in the state.
“The personal law governing A allows polygamy. A has three wives B, C and D. A and B, A and C, and A and D shall be counted as three distinct married couple so far as the status of B, C, and D is concerned but as far as the status of A is concerned, it shall be counted as one married couple for the purpose of calculation of cumulative number of children,” the draft reads.
Last month, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had announced that the state government will implement the two-child norm in the state.
China relaxed its two-child policy in May 2021. Earlier, the country had scrapped its decades-old one-child policy in 2016 in view of the slowest population growth rate. In the case of one-child policy violation, the violators faced fines, loss of employment, and sometimes forced abortions.
“Complete Breakdown of Governance In UP”
Over 87 bureaucrats including former IAS, IFS, and IPS officers have written an open letter citing ‘complete breakdown of governance’ and ‘blatant violation of rule of law’ in UP.
The bureaucrats have written about the alleged attacks on peaceful protesters by police, arbitrary detentions, extra-judicial killings, alleged misuse of the National Security Act in the name of cow slaughter and against dissenters, and targeting of Muslim men with the law against ‘love jihad’. The letter also mentioned the case of Kerala-based journalist Siddique Kappan.
