Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, who is promoting people to have more children, is now considering providing attractive incentives for those having more children. The draft Population Management Policy, being prepared by the AP government to increase the state’s population, will exempt property tax for more than three children.
The AP government is looking to cover the cost of IVF treatment and increase maternity leave from 6 to 12 months, and provide work-from-home facilities to mothers. Keeping in mind the challenges of declining fertility and increasing elderly population in the state, the government is preparing the draft Population Management Policy for Andhra Pradesh.
Officials are formulating strategies to be followed in the short, medium and long term. As part of the measures to increase the fertility rate, several incentives have been proposed in the draft, considering the advice and suggestions of intellectuals and experts. The fertility rate in the state, which should have been 2 points to one, has decreased to 1.5.
Experts say that this development is worrying. It is estimated that by 2047, the elderly population in the state is likely to reach 23 percent. Currently, it is estimated that it is between 13-15 percent. 12 percent of couples in the state have problems with having children. Some of them are consulting doctors for in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment to solve the problem. This treatment is expensive.
Usually, the treatment is done in three cycles. It is estimated that each cycle costs up to Rs 85,000. Some people are having children after IVF (In-Vitro Fertilization). The draft includes financial assistance from the government for this treatment. Property tax exemption for those who have three or four children, and an incentive of Rs. 50,000 for mothers who have a third child, and the government has decided to continue this policy for the fourth child.
It is reported that preparations are being made to provide work-from-home facilities to mothers working in government and private sector companies. The government is planning to increase maternity leave for female employees from 6 to 12 months and extend it to those working in the private sector.
To cater to mothers working in various offices, the government is looking to set up ‘creches’ for children, undertake training programs related to childcare through skill development, and provide employment to those who have received training in government and private organizations.
