Have More Kids, Get Cash: Andhra Pradesh’s New Plan To Fix Its Population Crisis

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu on Saturday announced that the state government will give financial incentives to families that go for a third and fourth child, as the state's declining population growth has become a matter of concern. He said the government will give INR 30,000 for a family having a third child and INR 40,000 for a fourth child, expanding on an earlier incentive of INR 25,000 for the second child.

Why Andhra Pradesh Is Pushing for Larger Families

Naidu has been advocating for large families in Andhra Pradesh as the state's total fertility rate (TFR) has been on the decline. With the TFR dropping to an all-time low of 1.5, significantly below the population replacement-level target of 2.1, Naidu has been encouraging families to have more children. The national TFR average stands at 2.1. Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu Bats for Incentives for Families To Have More Children.

Andhra Pradesh is reportedly the only state advocating for large families through financial incentives, a move that gains significance in view of the proposed delimitation exercise to be taken up across the country. The state has been at the forefront of family planning for decades, which has led to a gradual decline in its young population, a trend Naidu wants to reverse.

If current trends continue, nearly 23 percent of the population in Andhra Pradesh could be above 60 years by 2047. The mean average age in the state is 32.5, against India's national average of 28.4 years, while female workforce participation in Andhra Pradesh stands at 31 percent against the national average of 37 percent. Chandrababu Naidu Appeals Andhra Pradesh Couples to 'Have More Than 2 Kids', Offers Incentives.

What Naidu Said on Children as 'Economic Resource'

Naidu said times had changed since governments encouraged family planning, stating that children were the real wealth today. He said, 'The govt considers them a vital economic resource and national asset. We also plan to enhance the Talliki Vandanam scheme money, under which the govt provides INR 15,000 annually to mothers or guardians for each schoolgoing child from classes 1 to 12, in the coming days.'

He was addressing a public meeting during the Swarnandhra-Swachh Andhra programme at Tamrapalli in Narasannapeta. Naidu had earlier announced free education for the third child up to the age of 18, along with the opening of fertility clinics among other measures to boost population growth in the state.

Cleanliness Drive and Infrastructure Push

Referring to the state's cleanliness drive, Naidu said, 'As part of the Swachhapath campaign, the govt has taken action to clean all roads in rural and urban areas. By the end of June, we will clean 100 percent of garbage. Operation Clean Sweep has begun in the state from today.'

He said the government had cleared 86 lakh metric tonnes of legacy waste in the last 23 months, with 121 lakh tonnes of garbage removed so far. Through door-to-door collection, 7,527 tonnes of garbage is being collected daily in urban areas and 1,430 tonnes in rural areas. The government is setting up six waste-to-energy projects and six CBG plants at a cost of INR 1,254 crore, along with 107 integrated waste processing plants at a cost of INR 603 crore, expected to be ready by October.

Naidu also announced that the Bhogapuram international airport will become operational in July, with another airport coming up in Srikakulam district and a new airport planned for Palasa. He said the port of Moolapeta will benefit north Andhra and is expected to open this year. He further asserted that there will be no land disputes in the state by March 2027, as the government purges land records through re-survey and modern, tamper-proof pattadar passbook issuance.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 10, 2026 11:38 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).