Encounter with Population Crisis Lecture Series One

Encounter with Population Crisis Lecture Series One



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ONE
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POPULATION FOUNDATION OF INDIA
(March 11, 1990)
~----

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ONE
Dr Norman E Borlaug
on
POPULATION: A CHALLENGE TO
CONTEMPORARY DEVELOPMENT
STRATEGIES
POPULATION FOUNDATION OF INDIA
(March 11, 1990)

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ONE WORD NEVERTHELESS!
The Family Planning Foundation could not have been
luckier than having such an eminent world citizen as Dr Norman
E 'Borlaug to initiate its "Encounter-with-Population-Crisis
Lecture Series" with his inaugural address. Not only is the
celebrated speaker a Nobel Laureate, which fact itself betokens
high~st achievement in the service of knowledge and humanity
in very specialised fields, but also, verily a living legend. The
second most important fact about Dr Borlaug and his work is
that not only does India owe so m~ch to him by way of "Green
Revolution", which staved off hunger of millions people, but
also" he has been in love with our country. So, 'every word
spoken by him in the course of his lecture is' as transparently
pregnant with meaning as his own heart. He is a man possessed
- so totally is he committed to the cause of food and population.
The lecture was delivered to a select gathering. However,
the fact remains that it should have reached a much vaster
audience in the country, for whom it is intended. Hence the
effort to bring it out in the form of a small brochure.
On that day, I also had the privilege of interacting w,ith Dr.
Borlaug in a point-counter-pointsituation on a host of problems
concerning India and the world. A part of this discussion was
video-taped by Mr Harish Khanna, the Executive Director of
the Foundation and main inspiration behind this series, and
was later telecast by Doordarshan. The transcript of that
discussion also appears alongwith, as it seems to reinforce
the broad themes of the, lecture.
Bombay
January 3, 1992.
J R D Tata
Chairman

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The script is based on the address delivered by Dr Norman
E Borlaug, Nobel Laureate and Father of the Green Revolution
worldwide including India, who in the words of Mr J R D Tata has
saved perhaps hundred of millions of people in the world from
starvation by vitrue of his marvellous work.- Dr Borlaug's was the
inaugural lecture in the Encounter-with-Population-Crisis
lecture series initiated by the Family Planning Foundation to focus
on critical issues and to carry the debate forward. The Foundation
hopes that correct action follows clear thinking.
Dr Borlaug spoke at Hotel T aj Palace before a select gathering of
the Capital's intelligentsia including some young men and women
on March 11, 1990.
This script also contains a gist of the valuable ideas thrown up in
the question-and-answer session that followell his lecture,
participated in by some well-known scientists, intellectuals and
politicians.
HARISH KHANNA
Executive Director
...J

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'~n we are etIfJagul in raisitIfJtfUfooa proarution, tfU
ituvita6fe qu~fion we often o.5K...oursdvesis:
~ooa for now many ana within
what tirr.e-frame?'
~
rff have known Mr Tata as well as have had a glimpse
of his magnificent obsession. Way back in the 60's,
MrTata was the Chairman of the Corns and Fertilizers
Companyand as, you know, more food production issimply not
possible without the use of fertilizers in ample measure. So, he
was in many ways one of my allies in our common goal, working
out how best to bring about what we later came to know as
"Green Revolution". And as for his concern about population,
we have talked much between us during the day to know each
other better, within our respective obsessions. Not just that. We
have also talked together for the small screen. So, when you
hear or, better still, see us talking on your 1V sets, you shall
appreciate better how our respe(,'tive concern do actually
converge. Let me, therefore, say that J feel flattered by how
Mr Tata has chosen to introduce me to all of you this evening.
And as for my friend Mr Khanna, I like the way he haS reminded
me of my prognostications at the time of receiving the Nobel
Prize. It is charmingly clever of him to prognosticate all over
again in the context growing population menace and the
challenges it is posing to our strategies of growing more food.
Philosophy of the 'Kitchen Door'
Asyou all mightbe knowingand I repeat it quite often, my
interest in population and all that it means, came through the
'kitchen door'. When we are engaged in raising the food
production, the inevitable question we often,ask ourselves is:
Food forhow many and withinwhattime-frame?Thiswilly-nilly

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brings in the problem of population, its growth and even the
strategies evolved to curb it are widely inter-related to food.
So, whether you start from Mr Tata's end or my end, the quest
is not so very different.
Even so, I have been particularly fortunate in that, I have
been trying for the past 46 years to assist the third-world
countries to expand their food productions, so to be able to meet
their growing needs. Not just that. I feel I have been particularly
lucky in that I have been intimately working in your own
country and with your band of dedicated scientists for the last
27 years. Let Mr Tata put it however he likes, but my reward is
that I have made my very modest contribution to seeing the
Wheat Revolution and more generally speaking, the Green
Revolution covering many other food crops, take place here.
And what we have been able to achieve here in the past 20-22
years has surprised not a few prophets of doom and even some
sceptic nations no end. It is an achievement that redounds to
your credit.
Now let me emphasize how my philosophy of the 'kitchen
door' developed. I was born and brought up in a small farm in
the Mid West in the United States. I am a product of what we
may call a 'one room' country school-a modest affair, by all
means. However, that gave me some insights into the lives of
those who had to struggle no end to achieve a higher standard
of living. This gave me, what I may call, a more basic empathy
for the people of the third-world countries.
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'9{pt too many countria rtcognise tlie population pro6km
as tliey ouefit to until it reaf(y CO1tUSupon them
in sucfi an overwfie{ming manner'.
~
My first foreign assignments was Mexico-a country only
next door to the United States of America. Still, the contrast
between the two situations was much too apparent. Before that,
I had done a stint in forestry, miles away from the human
civilisation, in the company of beautiful birds and beasts only.
I must say that gave me a singleness of purpose and made be
a very impatient man for results.
Anyway, Mexico at that time, say, 46 years ago or towards
the end of the Second World War, had only 22 million mouths
to feed. This population is now 88 million -which means, four
times inthe matter of four and -a-half decades. And itisonly now
that Mexico has started to address itself to its problem of
burgeoning population. More serious efforts in this regard have
come in the last 8-10 years only. At the time I was working on
increasing the output of Mexican wheat and maize, say, more
than three decades ago, I often would discuss with some of my
intimate friends the problem of multiplying mouths, as I was
becoming more conscious of the nexus that exists between
population and food.
Today, a good number of them complain to me why I did
not speak up for curbing population growth when there was still
time. But my reply to that is, that had I done so, they would have
thrown me out, as I was then not so well-recognised by the
majority of people. What this really means in terms of this
discussion is that, not too many countries recognise the
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population problem as they ought to, until it really comes upon
them in such an overwhelming manner. And once it happens,
it becomes well nigh difficult, if not impossible to turn the tide
back, though do that we must. And this adds immensely to the
enormity of the problem.
Now food itself is not so simple a question. It is one thing to
grow more food. But it is quite another to organise the whole
infrastructure of a distributing system that not only ensures the
availability of food to the needy, but also invests them with the
purchasing power than can bring the food, in the required
quantity and quality, to reach their kitchens. For, it necessitates
removing unemployment and under-employment-the two things
not so very easy to accomplish. The problem becomes
compounded many times over, ifthe country is also faced with
a shortage of the precious foreign exchange.
Even if all things enumerated above are favourably placed,
there still remains the need for enlightened and committed
leadership. Your own experience in 1963 amply fortified what
I want to say now. At that point of time, India was very fortunate
to have been led into experimenting with imported seeds and
technology by a very brilliant, adventurous and confidence-
inspiring team. Mr C Subramanian was then the Union Minister
of Agriculture. But, he by himself, could hav~8chieved precious
little, ifthe bureaucracy led by Secretary, Mr Sivaraman had not
supported him to the hilt, with his well-digested briefs. But, both
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'It is not tlU scientist 6ut tlU farmer
tliat firw£[y protiuus tlUfood'.
~
of them still would have perhaps been inadequate of India's
most far-seeing scientist Dr M S Swaminathan were not there
to relate the available research and information with the
desirability of taking such an initiative. Allthe three S' s from the
South, stood true and firm in taking the most unwelcome
decision of importing 18,000 tonnes of Mexican seed in 1966,
even if each one of them could have lost his head in the
bargain. It was a show of administrative drive and political will
at their best.
There were many more friends who contributed their mite
to the success of the wheat revolution in India in no insignificant
a manner. Happily, I can place many of theJT}beaming smiles
at me in this august audience. I compliment them on having
participated in this high drama at a momentous period in the
history of the nation. For, it is not so simple to manage to import
new technology, particularly in the traditional societies such as
India. But it is the illiterate farmer who did the trick with such
consummate ease.
Let me, here, remind my listeners that it is not the scientists,
but the farmer that finally produces the food. Not that the role
of scientists is not important, but the new technologies produced
by them have got to be demonstrated to the actual producers,
which means the farmers, before they are able to translate
dreams into realities. And even demonstration can prove
counter-productive ifthe package does not have the backing of
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proper economic and political policies. Hence a good
amount of home-work has to precede the actual change in
agricultural practices. But the results so far have been more than
encouraging.
I.have already hinted at the reason of the success achieved
in India. Now look at the figures: they are really more eloquent
than all the words at my command. India's wheat production
alone has increased from 11 million tonnes per annum to 55
million tonnes per year, which means a five-time increase within
a short span of 22-23 years. But it is not just the wheat
production, other crops too have gone through such a revolution
all along the line. The upshot! The farmer is not at all shy of
changing his traditional practices in favour of the latest
technological innovations. And it is an important conclusion.
Now I turn to my experience in Africa. Most academicians
and intellectuals from the affluent nations were asking: Could
the Indian or Pakistani, or Mexican experience be replicated in
the Dark Continent? Africa is socially and culturally so different,
so backward, not yet exposed to modem ideas of mobility and
innovation. But it was worth trying.
We started with a small transfer of technology in respect of
sorghum and maize, four years ago. The research in this case
had come from two international institutions, namely your own
Institute at Hyderabad in respect of sorghum, and the Institute
of Mexico where I work, in respect of maize. We put the
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"I1it 6eginning is, not 4ou61:, small. 'But tfu promise
is great. (jliatUl is sfwwing tfu way',
~
information together and demonstrated itto the farmers. There
were no credit facilities available. Wherefrom was the small
farmer to pay for fertilizers and other inputs? We had to tax our
core budget for it. A small cross-section of petty farmers was
chosen and the agreement was, that they would pay back in
kind at the time of the harvest. Happily, the pay-back was 100
per cent in the very first year. This was no small miracle. Now
a Government bank came forward to arrange finance, of
course, condescendingly. The second year also had 100 per
cent pay-back. The farmers were very small and cost per head
of the experiment no more than $50 per head.
The beginning is, no doubt, small, but the promise is great.
Ghana is showing the way. Even if no transport is available, no
finance is forthcoming, the food there is abundant. Now Africa
is a great land mass and even if the growth rate is such that
populations can double themselves in 22 years, the present,
which means the initial population is not much -just 650 million!
Hence the great potentiC1l.
A Tell-tale Story of Population Growth
But in a pure macro scenario, the population octopus as I
use to call it, though it has many more tentacles than a mere
octopus, has assumed far dangerous proportions than we really
can imagine. I put it in a simple, epigrammatical way. The first
time, when one billion of humans started to live on this planet,
was 1850 A D. The starting date is the dawn of creation its~lf,
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maybe 2 or 3 million years ago. It was verily an achievement of
the homo sapien, in that he had conquered not only nature but
also death in several ways profound.
But the.real battle of conquering the communicable diseases
was just getting underway in 1850 A D only. Great advances
in medical science and medicine took place in the later half of
the nineteenth century. The result. The second billion of the
human population was added in the next 80 years only, which
means by 1930 A D. Now, the real age of great medical
inventions was actually dawning. New and more powerful
antibiotics and several kinds of deep-acting vaccines were
developed. This banished even such felldiseases as pneumonia.
There was a steep fall in mortality, not only among the infants,
but also among the adults of rather advanced age. Thus, we
added the third billion to the human population in the next 30
years which means by 1960 A D and the fourth billion came in
just under twelve years. We now stand 5.2 billion.
In an overall sense, there has. been some decline in the
rate of growth of population for the world, taken as a whole. It
is 1.7 at the present time, worldwide. But such small decline
leads to nowhere. For, while in 1975, we were adding 80 million
more mouths per annum to our population, today we are
adding 88 million per annum, to be more precise. Thus, the
battle against multiplying numbers has, itappears, become even
more keen, though, most of the people have, as yet no idea as
to know keen.
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'In my own fe;rjam, creative worK-is tlie [jest met!idne tnat
qot! lias given to men and women '.
~
Education holds the Key
Here, I will now like to address myself to one more basic
problem, to which we have no satisfactory answer as yet. If the
now technology of agriculture has been accepted by the poorest
of the farmelS in the world everywhere, then how come the
technology of restricting the population among the same
segments of people has not yet been so well accepted? Both the
technologies are well tried out. The tools of communication are
the same; in fact, at no time of man's existence on earth has he
ever been served by a more velSatile man-to-man communication
or the mass media. Then, there is strong evidence of the fact,
that if new practices are adopted, the results are wholly
beneficial for the family. Not just that, in the case of non-
adoption, father, mother, children, nay, the community as a
whole suffelS. But then, what makes for this resistance in the
case of family planning? Well, I have no doubt that people want
to change for the better. Then, does family planning not offer a
change for the better? Yes. But then....
It is too difficulta question to lend itselfto a simplistic reply.
I am about as perplexed as you are. But on deeper thought, it
appealS that the family planning motivation to go home,
requires a higher level of cultural evolution of the female; a
higher lever of education on the part of the women. They should
not only be wise enough to make the right choices but also
educated enough to let the new family-norm become socially
acceptable.
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In my own lexicon, creative work is the best medicine that
God has given to men and women to work for the benefit of the
family, community, nation and lastly the world at large. But if
they do not have employment, then how do they contribute to
this higher welfare? Hence, education is the key to the transfer
of that technology which we have uppermost in our mind.
Today, during our discussion for the small screen, myself
and Mr Tata agreed 100 per cent between ourselves on the
point. One of the most frustratings thing is the inability to send
our message across to he people in general, even with the best
tools available. Itcannot be done without education -education
which encompasses healthcare, as well as the ability to move
into secondary and tertiary sectors of employment.
Italy offers a good case in pointto illustrate what I mean. Italy
is a Roman Catholic country with good amount of political
instability thrown in. Hence family planning should have been
an emotive issue there with a lot of resistance to its practice. But
none of it. Today, Italy is among the few nations, even among
the developed world, which have achieved a zero growth rate
in terms of demography. Such a result could hardly have been
possible, if the people were not among educationally the most
advanced ones in Europe, with women acting with fullsense of
responsibility in respect of their own and nation's happiness.
Family Planning with them, is a part of their basic socio-cultural
ethos. Hence they require no outside motivation.
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'iJ1ieh. umour of tIU situation is that tIU so-talktf wea~r se;r.is
rea£[y tIU stronger one, given /ia£f a chanal'
~
Concern for Environment
However, what I mean by education inthis sense is, a whole
new awareness of science and reason that gets the better of all
superstition and ignorance. But it is easier said than done. For,
even among the educated, I quite often find men with littlesense
of discrimination. Many of them are led by fads and fashions
that hold the stage for a while before ultimately fading away.
Now an educated man, it is difficult for one not to be aware of
one's own surroundings. But to make such a fetish of the
damage to environment as is being currently done, is also not
very correct.
In the United States, where the environmentall activists
are found to be in ever greater number, a feeling has gone
round that human beings are being poisoned out of
existence by pollution. Not just that, even the foods is
getting highly contaminated with pesticides and what not. But
where is the evidence? People are living longer and healthier
than ever before. Look at the facts. The average life expectancy
at birth in the United States way back in 1900, when the
county was far greener, was still 47 years for a male baby,
while his female counterpart outstripped him by one year. In
1985, the same baby boy had the expectation of living on an
average for 72.6 years and a baby girl 78 years. The humour of
the situation is that, the so-called weaker sex is really the
stronger one, given half a chance! Anyway, the life expectancy
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has continued to rise. In your own case, the life expectancy
has doubled sinCe Independence. At the time, it was yet in
the nighbourhood of 30 years, which is now estimated to be
60 years.
But one must not ignore the damage to the human habitat
by our own doings. For example, the dangers to the ozone layer
in the stratosphere, the burning of faster fuels, the releasing of
the excessive carbon dioxide, etc., are real concern that we
ought to have long been worried about.And some of these ills
should be taken care of without delay . Yet, this is a field where
a lot of speculation is also rife. It is only the really educated ones
who can know the extent of real damage, calling for urgent
practical' remedies.
A new interest currently popular among the affluent nations
is to be able to see more and more animals and birds. Well, let
me tell you something from my own experience. My first
professional assignment was that of a Forester. As said earlier,
I was left in some of the most isolated areas of the United States
miles away for human being. Hence, I learnt to enjoy the
company of the animals and birds. But pray, do not be startled
ifI tell you that 99 per cent of all the species of birds and animals
got destroyed long ago even without our knowing about it. We
put pressure on these species by our own very great numbers.
The upshot is that we must first try to rectify our own mistakes,
reduce our own pressure!
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'£ack...of eaucation rwt aniyamounts to hutfl£ln wtl5tage, but also
aeprives tliefamily aruf tlie society, tlie nation aruf
tlie worU a c/iance to benefit from tlie hidden
potentid t/iat each irufivUiuafs Iitl5'.
~~
Genetic Clock and Education
I am quite aware of the argument that we must first fight the
menace of population at the poverty end. To say so sounds
rather grandiose. But where are the resources to be earmarked
for the purpose? Can we wait endlessly before beating back
poverty? Hence I plead for education of mind which means
cultural evolution and social advancement. Need I tell you that
to be able to successfully fight poverty, that educational process
must be on, which may enable the genetic clock embedded in
each one of us work to its fullpotential. This clock embedded in
each one of us work to its full potential. This clock is set the
moment one is concei~ed. Remember! Everyone of us has
genetic cords directly inherited from father and mother and
indirectly from grandparents. We have nothing as such to do
with them. But it sets limits to our potential advancement, both
physical and mental. We _can realise our potential as human
being the way we live, eat, work or rest. Our clothing, our
exercise, our habitat, each one affects it. Now in respect of
intellectual capacity and education, however we may try, if
proper levels are not reached, itis well nigh impossible to stretch
these genetic cords to their outermost limits. Hence lack of
education not only amounts to human wastage, but also
deprives the family and society, the nation and the world a
chance to benefit from the hidden potential that each individual
has. We must convince the political and religious leaders to face
up to this fact and provide opportunities for better life for all
those present on the stage of world.
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Recent Change for Peace and Progress
During the past eight or nine months, there has been a
tremendous change in the world. The pace of that change is
perceptibly increasing with each moment passing. I cannot, at
the moment, say whether we were moving towards achieving a
real Utopia. However, one thing now appears certain that peace
seems more securely in the grasp of human beings. This could
mean less expenditure on armament and more equitable
distribution of all the human and material resources for the well
being of the man. Hence, East-West policies have to be
reshaped and the North-South dialogue given a new meaning
and content for complete reordering of priorities. Now, even the
United Nations may feel strong enough to coerce the world into
adopting a new norm for the family. We require a few crusaders
for this cause.! could have been one such crusader had I been
a few decades younger. However, it is a great opportunity;
it must be made good.
China and India
Now coming back once again to the mundane realities of the
terra !irma, I can conscious of the fact that in every possible
discussion on population in India, China must find some place,
even ifsub-consciously. Yes. They, it seems, are moving faster
towards stabilising their population and India has yet to cover
a lot of leeway in this direction. But what struck we most during
my visits to China is that in the Mandarin regions, where the
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'India liappens to 6e tlit toucli-stOtU of ufucation
in population programmes '.
~
populace happen to be culturallymore homogeneous, population
control programmes seem to have clicked better, but not so in
some of the south-western Chinese provinces, where the
population is not culturally so homogeneous. Chinese have
their own problems. With more of democratisation, they too
may have more of individual initiative. But India, being an open
society, problems could be more precisely located and analysed
and educational interventions formulated for more enduring
results. India happens to be the touch-stone of education in
population programmes-the theme I am trying to strike again
and again.
A Hopeful Note
In the end, I should revert to Mr Khanna's well-meant
provocation to me in the beginning. Yes, in 1970, while
receiving the Nobel Prize, I had told the world community that
the science had empowered itto stave off the problem of hunger
and food shortages but only for the next 30 years, which means
up to 2cx)()A D. Out of these crucial 30 years, 20 have already
elapsed and my regret is that not much has been accomplished.
~nthe next 10 years, we are reaching a new threshold - a new
millennium. What could be the situation at that point of time?
It is good that we make a new exercise to that end. But even
without going into all the whys and wherefores of the whole
thing, I may state that a scientist is an incorrigible optimist. And
if human history is a chain of challenges and responses, then we
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must assure ourselves that a new and far more versatile
intervention may eventually emerge from the womb of the
future. Biotechnology and plant genetics have opened up
endless possibilities. But equally endless is the man's own
capacity to create problems for himself. No one can, therefore,
predictwhatthe future is going to be. But ifwe take an educated,
enlightened view, then the human population will stabilise
sooner or later - may be sooner than later!
.
.
.
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TWO MASTERS IN CONVERSATION
~~
JRD:
Dr Borlaug! In your Nobel Prize acceptance speech, you
had mentioned that whatever was being done by way
of increasing the food production, would give us a
breathing time of no more than 30 years. Now that was
in 1970, say 20 years back. It, therefore, leaves us only
10 years to go about. I am wondering whether you still
feel that is the time schedule we have got to live up to
or whether there is a change of mind on your part and
that you are still optimistic.
N.B.:
Mr Tata! Referring to the statement that I made 20
years ago, I feel we have used these 20 years rather
badly. We have not made much progress in taming
the population monster as I call it. In other words,
population issue is an over-riding issues. We have only
temporarily held it at bay, in most areas. The world hac;
increased the food production faster than population
growth. But that does not assure all people in the world
of adequate food. Lack of purchasing power and
unemployment make it difficult to distribute the food
once it is produced. But looking ahead, the 30 years
that I envisioned could have been used more gainfully,.
especially when we could produce food faster than
population. However, it made us complacent; the world
at large does seem to think that there is no population
problem. However, working on the food front and
interested in the envitonment issue as I have been, I very
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strongly feel that if we failed to educate the general
public about the monstrous proportion of population
problem, the civilisation will be in real danger of
retrogression.
JRD:
I could not agree with you more. In our country, that
difficulty is to get people -I mean even the people who
have the means to influence the public opinion. That's
why, it is so difficulty for your message to get across.
There are many parts of India where literacy is virtually
non-existent or it is so low that itcannot be helpful to the
people particularly the young women. That inhibits the
people to accept the fact that by denying themselves the
knowledge of population problem they are preventing
themselves and their children the chance to have a
decent life-a lifewhich is much more than merely having
food. Therefore, the problem seems to be one of
educating the people in our country, I mean even
educating the educated. In some states of India, you
simply cannot help the people. Here I am not talking of
the young ones or the children but even the older
people. How can you expect them to understand allthat
we are trying to tell them when we cannot even reach
them. T V is helpful but it cannot do everything. They
just don't know how to read. That, of course, is not true
of everybody. We have a lot of so-called educated
people but many of them are really worse off than those
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"We /iave a fot of so-caffetf etfualtetf peopCe hut many of tliem are
reaffy worse off t/ian those who cannot reaa or write '.
~
who cannot read or write. Therein lies the crux of the
problem. Now what to do about it?
N.B.
I agree with you Mr Tata I have lived in developing
countries, working on the food problem, for 46 years
now. I have been extremely interested and active about
the population issue for 30 years. I have seen the
problem evolving. For example, in Mexico where I went
in 1944, the population was then 22 million. Today, it
is 88 million. And there is growing unemployment.
However, in spite of the act that Mexico has made
tremendous progress in increasing wheat production as
well as maize production, the situation is growing
critical. The lack of education among the lower-class
rural people further complications the problem. Let us
look at the rhythm of the growth of the population in the
world. It took probably two million years for the
population to reach one billion mark about 1850. By
that time we were beginning to know about infectious
diseases and so that disease-rate was cut down. The
second billion was added n 80 years, by 1930 i.e. when
there were still better vaccines and antibiotics available.
The third billion we added in 30 years, by 1960. The
fourth billion we added by 1975. And the fifth billion we
added only in 12 ye~rs. It looks like that we are now 5.2
billion strong. We are adding 87 million more mouths to
population every year -which means about 167 mouths
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per minute. Where will it take us? We have to send
message across to the political leaders to the world, to
the religious leaders of the world that unless population
growth is brought into harmony without ability to
provide the basic necessities for a decent life, civilisation
is going to retrogress and even collapse. There are
people today, groups of activists in the affluent
industrial world, who arp saying, talking and expending
great effort, great emotion in support of the right of life.
But the never make a mention of the quality of life. But
they never make a mention of the quality of life. They
are ignorant and unless the whole thing is brought
into proper perspective, we shall be deceiving the
people no end. The time is short. I say this even having
seen a lot of progress in food production here in India.
We are proud of it. I have played but a small role in it
though it is an outstanding example of success. But
during the last two days we have been discussing the
outlook for the next 10 years as well as the next25 years.
For ten years I think we can hold the line. Beyond that
unless the population growth slows, India shall again
be in deep trouble.
JRD:
You give me a cause for even more alarm than before.
It is obvious that a great danger is looming large ahead
of us. It threatens to destroy all the hopes of his country
and its people for a better tomorrow, because it is going
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"I1Ure are peopfe today, groups of lUtivists in tlU affCrunt irufustriaf
worU, who are saying, taCking aruf eitiParufing
great effort, great emotion in support
of tlU riglit of Cife '.
~
to bring to naught all improvements, all development.
The matter seems to be even more urgent than anybody
seems to believe except perhaps you and I and a few
others. What to do is the question?
N.B.:
I think there haS emerged one big ray of hope
nevertheless. For the first time in 40 or 50 years there
s'~ems to be a willingness among all the major nations
of the world to cut 1;>acokn the expenditure on armament.
If these funds could be diverted into education and
especially education firstat the literacy level and then at
the primary and secondary levels to be able to spread
the message of this problem of population growth as
also that of the opportunities for a decent standard of
living for all those who come on to the stage of life, may
be we can still surprise ourselves.
JRO:
You know Dr Borlaug! the only thing that I have a
doubt about is the initial need in the country to educate
the people. I don't mean we educate them to the
university level but at least to the level where we educate
them to be literate so to be able to read, write and take
part in the general activity of the nation as also io
understand what is happening. However, I am not sure
as to what extent the countries of the world, which cut
back on armament and hav~ surplus funds shall care to
spend them on the schooling of these young children in
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the developing world. Also, it is doubtful ifthe countries
of the under-developed world would in practice invite
foreign aid to help people literate. But what you say is
a might attractive proposition all the same. Still, it is not
going to help the people, say, in a village of Rajasthan
to have schools -the schools they so badly need. But the
most important thing is to make them realise what is
happening and what they ought to know. Now, how to
put across this fundamental p'oint?
N.B.: It won't happen overnight. It will take time.
- JRD.: That's what you are not allowing us I mean TIME.
N.B.:
We are impatient to see all this take place in a jiffy.
But we shall have to start in shot, measured steps.
I am afraid when we talk of education, too many
thinkof education at the universitylevelor at Master-of-
Science or Doctor-of-PhUosophy level. This is not
the basic thing. The need is to get the message across
to the general public, to the political leaders and to
the religious leaders. Coming back to them, they are
the people that will have to put their shoulders to
the wheel.
JRD: But provided they understand the problem themselves
or even the seriousness of it.
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"JlU most important tliing is to mak!- tliem realise 'what
is happening and what tliey ouglit to K.nO1l1.1{pw/
Iiow to put across tliis fundamental point '.
~
N.B.: In that case it is they who will be charged with the
collapse of civilisation. So, they better realise the things
they are dealing with or should be dealing with.
JRD: Thank you very much Dr Borlaug.
('1Tufo«owing important wnversation fuzs 6een t7(urptd from a
tJJooraa.slian 'Discussion featuring Mr J'1(tJJ 'Tata am{ tJJr9{prman 'E 'BorCaug)
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About the Speaker
Dr Norman Ernest Borlaug's association with India is rather
old, spanning as it does nearly three decades, the highlight of
which his significant contribution to revolutionising agriculture
- an achievement, which was later celebrated in India with the
issue of a commemorative postage stamp, bearing the inscription:
"The Indian Wheat Revolution, 1968"
"Dr Norman Earnest Borlaug's work on the improvement
of grain, mainly disease-resisting, high-yielding semi-dwarf
wheat varieties achieved the historic result which, today, all over
the world, is described as the Green Revolution."
Born on March 25, 1914 on a small farm in Cresco, Iowa in
the United States, he originally studies Forestry. But he was
soon to be attracted by agriculture, in which field he has made
his major contribution, continuously conducting active research
and trainin~ agricultural scientists from all over the world, at
CYMMYT(International Maize and WheatImprovement Centre)
in Mexico.
In 1970, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. The
citation read: "More than any other single person of his age, he
has helped to provide bread for a hungry world." He was
honoured as a scientist who, through his work, turned the
pessimism of his age into optimism.
However, population remains as serious a concern of
Dr Borlaug as does the scenario of development. In his
acceptance speech at the time of the conferment of the
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~
Nobel Prize, he had said: "The Green Revolution has won a
temvorary success in man's was against hunger and
deprivation: it has given man a breathing space. If fully
implemented, the Revolution can provide sufficient food for
the next three decades. But the frightening power of human
reproduction must also be curbed; otherwise, the success of the
Green Revolution will be ephemeral only."
He went on to say: "Most people fail to comprehend the
magnitude and menace of the 'population monster' .If the world
population continued to increase at the estimated present
rate of two per cent a year,then it will reach 6.5 billion by the
year 2000.
Dr Borlaug is not so much a man of ideas as essentially a
man of action. Impatient with the deadly procrastination of the
bureaucrats and the red tape that thwarts quick action, he
strongly advocates a constant dialogue with the greater future
investment in research and education as will as in liberating the
spirit of innovation.
.
"There is no time to be lost, consideringthe magnitude of
world food and population problem," he exhorts.
While he is legitimately proud of his sold accomplishments,
he has the intellectual modesty of a true man of science to admit
that the 'the Green Revolution is a change in the right direction
but it has not transformed the world into Utopia.'
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Copyright 1992POPULA TIONFOUNDATION
(Formerly Family Planning Foundation)
Ed by P K Nijhawan
First Reprint: 1995
OF INDIA
First Published in 1992 by:
K Balakrishnan
Secretary and Treasurer,
Population Foundation of India,
B-28,Qutab Institutional Area, New Delhi - 110016
Composedand Re-printed by:
SIL VER BYTES
- G-50, Green Park
New Delhi 110 016
Editing and Production:
Sandhya Dhingra