China scraps two-child policy as birth rates fall

BEIJING: In a major shift, China on Monday announced that married couples can have up to three children scrapping the earlier limit of two.

The decision was taken after China, world’s most populous country, witnessed a dramatic decline in the birth rate.

The policy change was approved by President Xi Jinping during a politburo meeting.

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In 2016, China dropped its decades-old one-child policy replacing it with two-child limit to ensure that the population doesn’t impact the economy.

However, the shift failed to result in a sustained surge in births given the high cost of raising children in Chinese cities.

With the policy shift, China is also planning to take other measures including reducing educational costs for families, stepping up tax and housing support, assuring the legal interests of working women etc.

The government reportedly added that it will also take measures to educate the young population on “marriage and love.”

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