India may be world’s most populated country, Delhi world’s most populous city by 2028: UN report

India is likely to become the world’s most populated country and New Delhi is expected to be more populated than Tokyo to become the world’s most populous city by 2018, predicted a United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) report.

Presently, India (1.2 billion) is the second most populated country after China (1.4million). Tokyo leads the list of world’s most populous cities with 37 million inhabitants, with New Delhi on the second spot with 29 million people.

The report also estimated that three countries — India, China and Nigeria — would witness 35 per cent of the expected growth of the world’s population by halfway into the 21st century. Also, India is projected to add 416 million urban inhabitants by 2050.

John Wilmoth, director of the Population Division said, the urban population growth provides more economic opportunities to the people but insuring their healthcare facilities, sanitation, basic amenities is a challenging task. He also raised concerns about the rapid migration of population to the urban areas, saying it has led to large slum areas especially in developing countries.

The report also predicted that the number of megacities (cities with more than 10 million population) could jump to 43 from 31, mostly in developing countries.