Problem of Over-Population

Overpopulation is an undesirable situation where the number of the existing human population exceeds the actual carrying capacity of Earth. Overpopulation is caused due to many factors. Reduced mortality rate, depletion of precious resources, better health facilities, are some of the problems which cause overpopulation. Advancement of technology has affected humanity in various ways. For instance, the ability to save lives and create a better medical treatment for all, this directly resulted in the increased lifespan and hence, the growth of the population. 

In the past years, the growth of the population has increased in such a way that it has turned into overpopulation. Some of the reasons for population growth.

Various Causes of Overpopulation

1. Agricultural Advancements: Agricultural advancements and technological revolutions in the 20th century allowed humans to increase food production using fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides and yields further. Therefore, more access to food that leads to subsequent population explosions.
2. The Decline in the Death Rate: This is the root problem of overpopulation. The Death rate is calculated as the difference between the overall birth rate and death rate in populations. If the birth rate each year equals the Death rate, then the population will stabilize. The ability to sustain nutrition without hunting with technological advancement was the first imbalance between the two rates.
3. Better Medical Facilities: Medical science improves, and thus made many discoveries and inventions, through which people were able to recover a whole range of diseases. Illnesses that had claimed thousands of lives, were being cured easily with the use of vaccines. Combining the increase in food supply with fewer means of mortality rate disturbed the balance and hence, became the initial point of overpopulation.

The growth of the population has been on a constant increase since the time of the Bubonic Plague occurred in the 1400s. According to the study, between the time of the plague and the 21st century, there have been hundreds and thousands of wars, natural calamities, and man-made hazards. However, none of these could make a dent on the population.

Developing nations face a major problem rather than developed countries in terms of overpopulation. But, In the world that we live today, overpopulation affects most of the Earth.

According to the United Nations, there are forty-eight developing countries in the world that are most likely to be the major contributors to population growth. Approximately, the population of these countries is likely to increase, from 850 million in 2010 to 1.7 billion in 2050.

By- Sakshi Bhardwaj