Impact of Population on Environment in Madurai District

The world has changed greatly since the 1960s and 1970s, when there existed a virtual consensus among Western experts that rapid population growth in the developing world represented a serious global crisis. One of the primary causes of environmental degradation in a country could be attributed to rapid growth of population, which adversely affects the natural resources and environment. This study, in general, makes an endeavor to demonstrate how the population growth in Madurai district in Tamilnadu State of India has been conducive to the environmental degradation. In all the decades the decadal growth rate of population of Madurai district is higher than that of State except in the decade 1991-2001. It can be concluded from the present study that there is a pressure of population on the environment in Madurai district. Population is an important source of development, yet it is a major source of environmental degradation when it exceeds the threshold limits of the support systems. Unless the relationship between the multiplying population and the life support system can be stabilized, development programs, howsoever, innovative are not likely to yield desired results.