"The decision to end one-child policy has come too late."Discuss in the light of demographic problems being faced by China.

The One Child policy was implemented by Den Xiaoping. The main aim behind this policy was to control the expanding population which he felt was eating away the profits of the growing economy.
And now after around 30 years, the Chinese government has decided to abandon its one policy norm. However, has come too late because the Chinese now prefer having small families and have become accustomed to one child.
However, it is important to note why the one child policy norm is reversed. This is due the demographic problems China is crippled with.
China is facing a shrinking labour force and high older population. This would lead to increase in number of retirees and ultimately to the dependency ratio putting pressure on China. Ultimately it will lead to decreased competitiveness of China’s export driven economy.
However, it cannot rightly be considered a longterm solution to China’s economic dilemma. Critics opine that the one-child policy was a mean by which the China maintained control over the Chinese people. And again, two-child policy continues the government’s practice of meddling in personal family decisions. They suggest that the government should exit from the realm of coercive family planning and allow the Chinese people to make their own decisions about family size. (209 words)

Topics: GS-II: Bilateral Regional and Global Groupings and Agreements