Wang Feng, a leading demographer from the University of California, Irvine, dismissed Yi’s claims as sensational, extremely sloppy and based on highly politicised back-of-the-envelope calculations. “He’s a person with a political agenda and [who has been] a consistent critic of the Chinese government’s policy ... [so] his numbers should not be taken at face value.”

For the full story, please visit https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/may/24/india-is-worlds-most-populous-nation-with-132bn-people-academic-claims