New Delhi, Jul 25 : The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has informed the Lok Sabha that India’s projected population as of July 1, 2023, stands at 139 crore, according to a report. Union Minister of State for Home, Nityanand Rai, cited data from the United Nations’ Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division online publication, World Population Prospectus 2022, which estimates China’s projected population on the same date to be 142,56,71,000.

Replying to a written question, Rai stated that the National Commission on Population, under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, published a technical group’s report on population projections, which indicates India’s projected population to be 139,23,29,000 as of July 1, 2023. The announcement clarified that the central government had notified the intent to conduct Census 2021 in the Gazette of India on March 28, 2019. However, due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the census and related field activities were postponed.