Andhra MP offers ₹50,000 for 3rd daughter, cow for boy
What's the story
Kalisetti Appala Naidu, an Andhra Pradesh Lok Sabha MP of the ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP), has caused a storm with his suggestion of incentivizing women for having a third girl child.
He offered ₹50,000 for the delivery of a third female child and a cow if it is male.
Naidu justified it by saying India needed to increase its population, or future generations in Andhra Pradesh would be "very poor."
"The Indian population has to rise," Naidu told reporters.
Support and criticism
Naidu's proposal has received mixed reactions
He stated that he came up with the proposal after being inspired by state Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu's calls to boost Andhra Pradesh's population.
Naidu and others, in turn, called the proposal "revolutionary."
The offer came during a public meeting in Vizianagaram, one of the state's 25 Lok Sabha seats.
This area is known for its strong TDP presence and is currently involved in a delimitation debate with the Centre over constituency limits based on current population data.
Delimitation concerns
Population control debate amid delimitation dispute
The delimitation controversy has alarmed southern states, which fear they will lose seats in the Lok Sabha because their population control measures have been successful, unlike many northern states.
Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin has been particularly vocal, demanding from PM Narendra Modi assurances that any increase in the total number of MPs will be proportionately allocated to states based on the 1971 census.
Policy shift
Chandrababu Naidu's stance on delimitation and population
Stalin had also invited Naidu for a discussion on delimitation, but whether he will attend remains to be seen.
He also said that he has sent the letter to party heads in Kerala, Telangana, Karnataka, West Bengal, Odisha, and Punjab, calling for an "uncompromising fight against this unfair exercise."
Earlier this month, Naidu tried to dissociate delimitation from population management.
He warned of an impending "aging problem" in southern states due to an imbalance between the elderly and working-age populations.