Demographics of Delhi

Delhi’s population is more than 15 million people (2005 est.), making it the 3rd largest metropolitan area in India after Bombay and Calcutta. About 295,000 people live in New Delhi and 125,000 in Delhi Cantonment. There are 827 women per 1000 men; the literacy rate is 78.5%. Approximately 90% of the population is urban. Delhi has one of the highest per capita incomes in India and is one of the fastest growing metropolitan areas in Asia. According to a 2001 census by the Indian government, 13.0 million people lived in the Delhi metropolitan area.

However, it is now estimated that more than 15.0 million people live in Delhi and its surrounding suburbs with migrants accounting for 60% of the increase in population. Include the satellite towns NOIDA, Gurgaon, Faridabad and Ghaziabad, the population is estimated over 20 million. Due to relatively high employment opportunities and better living conditions, Delhi has attracted millions of people from rural areas in neighbouring Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

Delhi’s state government has come under tremendous pressure as the city’s infrastructure struggles to keep pace with the rising population. In 2001, the state government launched a ‘master plan’ to allocate more residential, commercial and industrial areas in the region and also decided to invest billions of dollars in city’s infrastructure.