All States will benefit from proposed delimitation: PM, Pg1

Key Highlights:

• PM Modi announced plans to increase the size of the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies by half, with 33% reservation for women, before the 2029 general election.
• The government aims to amend the Constitution and relevant laws during the reconvened Budget Session on April 16.
• Modi addressed concerns that States with stabilised populations might lose Lok Sabha seats after delimitation, assuring a guarantee against seat reduction.
• Pathanamthitta district in Kerala, with a Total Fertility Rate of 1.3, exemplifies the population stabilisation concerns of southern States.

Detailed Insights:

• The proposed delimitation aims to redraw the electoral map based on population changes, potentially disadvantaging southern States with lower fertility rates.
• The government intends to maintain the proportion of individual States in the Lok Sabha based on the 1971 Census, even after the delimitation exercise.
• The constitutional amendment will ensure that the seats reserved for women are created as additional seats, increasing the total number of seats in the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies.
• The existing laws mandate a fresh delimitation following the Census after 2026, but the government plans to amend these laws to start the process earlier for implementation before the 2029 elections.
  
  
  

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Key Concepts Involved:

• Delimitation: The process of redrawing electoral boundaries to reflect population changes.
• Total Fertility Rate (TFR): The average number of children a woman is expected to have in her lifetime.
• Reservation: A quota or percentage of seats set aside for specific groups, such as women, in legislative bodies.