The Times Of India
Bharti Jain,TNN | Aug 26, 2015, 03.51 PM IST
NEW DELHI:
The Muslim population grew by 24.6% between 2001 and the 2011 Census, against the 16.8% decadal growth rate of Hindus in the same period.
Though the all-India decadal growth of Muslims was less than 29.3% between 1991 and 2001, their statewise decadal growth rate, as reflected in the 2011 Census, is higher than Hindus in all 35 states and UTs.
The 2001-11 growth rate of total population was 17.7%.Christians, during this period, grew by 15.5%, Sikhs by 8.4%, Jains by 5.4% and Buddhists by 6.1%. Those stating other religions and persuasions grew by 19.6% in the 10 years preceding 2011.
Significantly, the number who didn't state their religion went up by 294% between 2001 and 2011.
The state UT figures for decadal growth between 2001 and 2011 show a notable rise in the Hindu population of UP (24.6%), Jharkhand (21.1%), Rajasthan (20.9%), MP (20%), Puducherry (28.9%) and NCT of Delhi (20.7%). States that show a Hindu decadal growth less than the national average are Kerala (2.2%), Arunachal (5.8%), Bengal (10.8%), Assam (10.9%), Andhra (10.3%), Himachal (12.6%), Odisha (13.2%), Chhattisgarh (13.2%), TN (14.9%), Maharasthra (15.2%), Karnataka (15.8%) and Haryana (16%), among others. Lakshadweep and Mizoram recorded a negative decadal growth at -19.5% and -4.5%. This could be due to their low population base.
States and UTs where the Hindu decadal growth was higher than their averages are Punjab, Karnataka, Goa, Puducherry, Chandigarh, Nagaland, Daman & Diu and Dadra & Nagar Haveli.
Muslims, on the other hand, rose across states, bettering their national average in Mizoram (46.9%), Haryana (45.7%), Chandigarh (44.7%), Punjab (40.2%), Nagaland (39.9%), Uttarakhand (39%) and the NCT of Delhi (33%), Rajasthan (29.8%), Assam (29.6%), Bihar (28%) and Gujarat (27.3%). Kerala returned interesting results with a 12.8% rise in Muslim population between 2001 and 2011, far higher than the corresponding figures for Hindus (2.2%) and Christians (1.4%).
The decadal growth rate for Christians (2001-11) was higher than 100% in Bihar and Arunachal, but the community recorded a negative growth in five states, including Nagaland (-2.8%), Andhra (-4.4%), Lakshadweep, Daman & Diu and Dadra & Nagar Haveli.
Sikhs recorded a high decadal growth in Odisha (25.7%), Gujarat (27.8%), Andhra (29.8%), Kerala (38.1%) and TN (53%), among others. The community showed negative growth in eight states UTs.
Jains have shown a 5.4% decadal growth across the country. While Himachal shows a notable growth rate for the community between 2001 and 2011 (28.2%), as many as 8 states recorded a negative growth rate.
