Andhra Pradesh MP offers Rs 50,000 or a cow as incentive for women having a third child
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In a bid to address the declining birth rate in Andhra Pradesh, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) MP Kalisetty Appalanaidu has announced a unique incentive for women who give birth to a third child.
Speaking at an event in Vizianagaram on International Women’s Day, the MP declared that he would personally provide Rs 50,000 from his salary to mothers who have a third child if it is a girl, while those who have a boy will receive a cow. The announcement was made as part of efforts to encourage population growth in the state.
Appalanaidu’s initiative aligns with the recent concerns raised by Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu regarding the state’s declining fertility rate. On the same day, the Chief Minister announced that maternity leave would be extended to all employees, regardless of the number of children they have. Until now, women were eligible for six months of paid maternity leave only for their first two pregnancies.
The state government has been actively promoting policies to boost birth rates, with CM Naidu previously warning about the consequences of a shrinking population. Citing the experiences of countries like South Korea and Japan, where birth rates have plummeted, he urged families to consider having more children. He pointed out that in Kuppam city, located in the Chittoor district, the birth rate had fallen to 1.5, well below the ideal rate of 2.
In line with these concerns, the Andhra Pradesh Assembly took a significant step last year by revoking a three-decade-old rule that barred individuals with more than two children from contesting urban local body elections. Minister Nadendla Manohar, while introducing the bill, highlighted that the state’s total fertility rate had dropped to 1.6, below the optimal 2.1. Additionally, the proportion of children under 15 had declined from 28.6% in 2015-16 to 26.5%, while the elderly population had increased.
CM Naidu has repeatedly urged citizens to prioritize family growth, emphasizing that choosing personal wealth over having children could have long-term consequences. “Had your parents thought like that, would you have come into this world now?” he remarked.