Jiyo Parsi Scheme Facilitates 534 Births Since 2014-15, Kiren Rijiju Tells Rajya Sabha
Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs and Minority Affairs Kiren Rijiju informed the Rajya Sabha on Monday that the Centre’s Jiyo Parsi scheme has facilitated 534 births since 2014-15. The initiative, launched to address the declining Parsi-Zoroastrian population, has seen the central government spend Rs 37.43 crore since its inception.
Rijiju stated that 582 community members have benefited from assistance covering infertility treatment, childbearing, childbirth, and post-natal care. In addition, 1,055 beneficiaries have received support under the scheme’s 'Health of Community' component since 2018-19.
The Parsi population in India has seen a steady decline over the past century. Census records show the population stood at 89,490 in 1891, peaked at 1,14,791 in 1941, dropped to 69,601 in 2001, and decreased further to 57,264 in 2011. Speaking at a National Commission for Minorities presentation in Mumbai, WZO Trust Funds chairman Dinshaw Tamboly attributed this trend to late marriages, falling birth rates, infertility, a high proportion of unmarried individuals, and inter-community marriages.
Rijiju noted that the births recorded under the scheme offer hope of stabilising the community’s population, adding that independent third-party evaluations found the program to be successful.
Pearl Mistry, representing the PARZOR Foundation which implemented the scheme until 2022-23, mentioned that 428 babies had been born under the initiative by that period. She highlighted that convincing couples to have more children requires long-term efforts and a shift in mindset.
The Jiyo Parsi programme was initially executed through PARZOR, the Bombay Parsi Punchayet, the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, and the Ministry of Minority Affairs. The scheme does not operate through Direct Benefit Transfer. In addition to direct medical support, the Ministry conducts publicity campaigns, workshops, registration drives, and information dissemination through major Parsi newspapers.
