India's population will stabilize around 1.8 to 1.9 billion by 2080 due to a falling total fertility rate (TFR), currently at 1.9, said Anil Chandran, general secretary of the Indian Association for the Study of Population (IASP). "In 2000, our TFR was 3.5 and today it stands at 1.9. This is a drastic decline," Chandran told PTI. He added that India's population peak will remain under two billion. The population drop is linked to better development and education. "Increased female literacy has directly shaped decisions around marriage and childbearing, leading to smaller families," Chandran said. Wider access to contraceptives has helped too. "Couples today are better informed and exercise greater control over when and how many children to have," he said. Late marriages and more career chances for women also play a big role. Chandran explained, "Development is inversely proportional to birth rates. Illiterate groups still have fertility above three, but among the educated, TFR ranges between 1.5 and 1.8." Kerala, for example, reached a replacement-level fertility (2.1) between 1987 and 1989 and now has a TFR of about 1.5. West Bengal's TFR fell from 1.7 in 2013 to 1.3 in 2023, among the lowest in India alongside Tamil Nadu and Delhi. While birth rates drop, life expectancy is rising due to better healthcare. "More people are living beyond 60, creating challenges for elderly care, especially as younger people migrate for work," Chandran added. Solutions like elderly day-care centers are being considered. IASP, founded in 1971 with around 1,100 demography experts, discusses these issues with help from UNFPA and other organisations.