Sunday, 13 Oct, 2024
By: Arshi Qureshi
Queen Elizabeth II was the oldest monarch in the world and ruled Britain for the longest time. She was 96 years old and had been battling health problems since October of last year.
Queen Elizabeth II was the oldest monarch in the world and ruled Britain for the longest time. She was 96 years old and had been battling health problems since October of last year.
On February 6, 1952, Elizabeth II, just 25 years old, succeeded her father, George VI, to the throne; she was formally chosen by her executive council.
She reigned as queen for 70 years.
Let's examine how the world changed during the approximately 70 years Queen Elizabeth II reigned as monarch.
World Population - Then & Now
When Queen Elizabeth was crowned the world population was over 2.5 billion (2,630,861,562) - a 1.81% increase from 1951.
Today, the world population is 7,975,105,156, a 0.83% increase from 2021. The rate of population growth worldwide dipped below 1% in 2020 for the first time since 1950.
The worldwide population growth rate peaked in the 1960s and 1970s. Although projections from recent years suggest that population growth in the 21st century has drastically slowed, the world's population is still growing overall. The global fertility rate has dropped by more than 50% since the 1950s.
Life Expectancy - Then & Now
According to the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs - following a decline from around 5 births per woman in 1950, the average fertility of the world's population in 2021 was 2.3 births per woman over the course of her lifetime.
Globally, between 1950 and 2017, men's life expectancy rose from 48.1 to 70.5 years (70.1 to 70.8), and women's life expectancy rose from 52.9 to 75.6 years (75.3 to 75.9).
Women's life expectancy at birth in 2019 was 5.4 years higher than men's, with female and male life expectancies being 73.8 and 68.4, respectively.
UK and India GDP - Then & Now
In the final quarter of 2021, India surpassed the United Kingdom (UK) to overtake it as the world's fifth-largest economy, according to data from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
According to the most recent figures, India's nominal GDP, or GDP at current prices, was Rs 64.95 lakh crore in the April-June quarter.
Under British rule India's GDP fell to 4.2% in 1950 from 24.4% in 1700.
However, India's GDP increased from 2.79 crore rupees in 1950–1951 to an expected 147.36 lakh crore rupees in 2021–2022.
The United Kingdom's quarterly gross domestic product in the second quarter of 2022 was roughly 568.7 billion British pounds, down from 569.2 billion pounds in the first quarter.
Since Queen Elizabeth II ascended to the throne seventy years ago, the UK economy is hardly recognisable. In 1952 the inflation was at 11.2%. The UK economy has grown five times since 1952, but productivity has slowed.
The UK accounted for nearly 9% of global merchandise exports in 1960. Its market share is now less than 2%, reported Bloomberg.
UK & India Literacy Rate - Then and Now
Literacy in the United Kingdom is 99%, which means that one out of every hundred people struggles to read and write.
From 1870 to 2003, the UK's literacy rate increased from 76% to 99%.
India's current literacy rate is 77.7% , according to the National Survey of India and in 1951 the literacy rate was at 18.33%. In India, male literacy is at 84.70% and female literacy is currently 70.30% as of 2021.
Number of Doctors in UK and India - Then and Now
There are 128,117 doctors working in England's hospitals and community health services as of February 2022. This is 30% more recent than ten years ago and 20% more recent than five years ago.
In 1949, there were 3,488 consultants and 11,735 full-time equivalent doctors in England and Wales. In England, there were 109,509 full-time equivalent medical and dental employees by the end of 2018, including 46,297 consultants, as per National Health Survey (NHS) data.
Whereas in India - as of November 2021, there were 13,01,319 allopathic doctors listed as registered members of the National Medical Commission (NMC) and the State Medical Councils.
Assuming 80% availability of registered allopathic doctors and 5.65 lakh AYUSH doctors, the doctor-population ratio in the nation is 1:834. 13 lakh Allied and Healthcare Professionals as well as 2.89 lakh registered dentists are present in the nation.
Only 50,000 doctors were practising in India in the 1950s. There were only 725 primary healthcare facilities nationwide.
