Population growth can be measured in absolute numbers and percentage change per year.

Question

Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are given below. Choose the correct option:

Assertion (A): Population growth can be measured in absolute numbers and percentage change per year.

Reason (R): Measuring growth only in absolute numbers provides detailed insights into population trends over time.

1. A. Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A
2. B. Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A
3. C. A is true, but R is false (Correct answer)
4. D. A is false, but R is true

Correct Answer

Option C — A is true, but R is false

Detailed Solution & Explanation

The correct answer is A is true, but R is false.

Key Points

• Assertion is true. Population growth is indeed expressed both in absolute numbers — the actual increase in people — and as a percentage change per year.
• Reason is false. Measuring growth only in absolute numbers does not give the fuller picture; it obscures the size of the base population. An increase of one million means something very different in a country of ten million than in one of a billion.
• The percentage measure is what allows comparison across populations of different sizes, so the reason inverts the actual position.

Additional Information

• Absolute growth = later population − earlier population; percentage growth = (absolute growth ÷ earlier population) × 100.
• India's decadal growth rate fell from 21.5% in 1991-2001 to 17.7% in 2001-2011, even as the absolute increase remained very large — precisely the distinction this question tests.
• Related measures: crude birth rate, crude death rate, rate of natural increase (birth rate − death rate) and total fertility rate, with 2.1 taken as replacement level.

प्रश्न (हिन्दी में)

नीचे अभिकथन (A) और कारण (R) दिए गए हैं। सही विकल्प चुनें:

अभिकथन (A): जनसंख्या वृद्धि को निरपेक्ष संख्याओं और प्रति वर्ष प्रतिशत परिवर्तन के रूप में मापा जा सकता है।

कारण (R): केवल निरपेक्ष संख्याओं में वृद्धि को मापने से समय के साथ जनसंख्या प्रवृत्तियों की विस्तृत जानकारी मिलती है।

1. A. A और R दोनों सत्य हैं, और R, A का सही स्पष्टीकरण है
2. B. A और R दोनों सत्य हैं, लेकिन R, A का सही स्पष्टीकरण नहीं है
3. C. A सत्य है, लेकिन R असत्य है
4. D. A असत्य है, लेकिन R सत्य है