Students of Patna Women’s College form a human chain to spread awareness of the population explosion, in Patna on Monday. Picture by Deepak Kumar

Patna, July 11: Health minister Ashwini Kumar Choubey said abstinence and self-discipline are natural methods of birth control, and people should adopt these rather than using contraceptives.

Speaking on the lines of his party, Choubey called for abstinence among youths to control the state’s rising population rate at a World Population Day function organised today at Anugrah Narayan Sinha Institute of Social Sciences.

“I recently attended a national-level convention on AIDS in New Delhi where Union health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad announced that the ministry would send condoms directly to the villages rather than sending them through the state governments. I strongly objected to this when I met him later stating that it was against our cultural ethos and values. Of course, there has to be a check on birth rate but we cannot promote free sex among youngsters and adolescents by making provisions like this,” said Choubey.

A firm believer in yoga and naturopathy, Choubey said he believed that they work wonders for birth control. He said: “I do not mean to say that we should not encourage other forms of family planning but it is best if we get back to the basics.”

Choubey added: “I have two kids but my wife and I never used any form of contraceptive and practiced self-discipline instead. I believe this to be the best and the natural way of birth control. By distributing condoms to all and everyone, will we not send out the message that go for sexual experiments as you are safe from the dangers of sexually transmitted diseases and there is no risk of pregnancy?”

The minister also said he had proposed to Azad that people who undergo terminal contraception methods, including tubectomy or vasectomy, should be given the encouragement sum only if they have a maximum of two children.

He also asked people from the minority community to join hands with others in adopting family planning methods, as the country cannot take too much pressure on its resources.

The health department principal secretary, Amarjeet Sinha, had earlier said the state had fared poorly on the parameter of total fertility rate for the past two decades and there should be more awareness and urgency among people to understand the need for birth control.

“Several studies have shown that literate and well-to-do women put greater stress on family planning and therefore promotion of education among women should be integrated with medical ways of family planning, as it is an important social issue,” Sinha said.

“The total fertility rate in Bihar is 3.9, which is way ahead of the national average of 2.7. About 46 per cent of the girls in the state get married before they turn 18. As a result of this, 58 per cent women in the state have their first baby at the age of 19 and 67 per cent couples do not use any method of birth control in their reproductive age. Although 37 per cent couples want to use these facilities, they cannot because of unavailability. This is a huge challenge for us,” said Sanjay Kumar, executive director, State Health Society, Bihar.