In Indian federal democracy, a State’s relative population size gains political and economic significance. The strong linguistic identities and regional renaissances in political and social spheres propelled the southern States to scale greater heights in all spheres of development. In sharp contrast to the northern States, population control has been achieved in the southern States through social development and economic growth. In the federal political system, changes in population geography have a lasting impact on the political and economic geography.
Delimitation and political representation
Article 81 of the Indian Constitution stipulates that Lok Sabha constituencies in the country should be equal by the size of population. Based on the 1971 Census, the number of Lok Sabha constituencies for States was determined and frozen for the next 25 years through the 42nd Amendment Act 1976. In 2001, through the 84th Amendment Act, the freeze on the number of constituencies for each State was further prolonged until the first Census after 2026.
