This book closely examines the changes, challenges and shifts in India’s family planning programme since its inception in 1952. It discusses the dynamics of population growth, the demographic dividend, family planning and its impact on maternal and child health, and the pressures from various quarters to remove method-specific contraceptive targets from the programme. The volume highlights the shortcomings in the delivery of services by the public sector and the critical role of non-government organisations in research, promotion and advocacy. Rich in empirical data, this book will be an indispensable resource for scholars, policymakers, organisations and NGOs concerned with population and demographic studies. It will also interest those in sociology, public policy and public health.

A compendium of successful case studies of FAMILY PLANNING implementation in India This is the first book on innovations in family planning service delivery in the country which is of particular contemporary relevance, both nationally and globally.It features innovative case studies of family planning from India which have demonstrated impact and are sustainable and scalable. These cases contribute to the approaches of problem solving, enhancing quality family planning care at the grass-roots level and influence future directions of the programme. The book facilitates advocacy, strengthening programme design and enhancing competency as well as orienting the healthcare system to support these efforts. This is an important book for programme planners, policy makers and researchers.

Proceedings of a seminar organized jointly by the Family Planning Association of India, Lucknow Branch and the Population Centre, India Population Project, Lucknow.

As a programme of directed socialand behavioural change, Family Planning has made considerable progress in India. An impressive library of family planning research has also been created in the process. There is, however, a disturbing communication gap between the research and the policy maker / planner-administrator. Research findings do not get canalized into action programmes. These two remain discrete activities with very little of interface between them. One of the reasons for this is lack of systematization of research findings. A stage has been reached when the stock-taking of the existing body of research has become necessary to provide a sort of ‘system’ or ‘order’ to the widely scattered data and findings, and to identify research gaps. This double exercise will render current research utilizable, and will stimulate further research. This is what Professor Kamala Gopal Rao does in this book. A distinguished researcher in the field of family planning, Dr. Rao has attempted to summarize and present in common format over 500 studies conducted in India, between 1950-1973, on different aspects of family planning. The main findings of the studies are critically reviewed for their relevance to the ongoing family planning programme. She has also reviewed the methodologies employed in family planning research. She suggests strategies to promote utilization of research. The book fulfils the much felt need for a ready reference for researchers and a guide to administrators, policy makers, and programme planners concerned with family planning.