The correct answer is 17.5 percent. Explanation & Key Takeaways: • India’s population accounts for the world’s 17.5 percent population. Hence option 3 is Correct. • Of the total population of 1210.2 million, the number of males was pegged at 623.7 million and the population of females stood at 586.5 million. • The percentage growth in 2001-2011 was 17.64. • For males, the growth rate was 17.19% and for females, it was 18.12%. • Though the country’s population is almost equal to the combined population of the U.S., Indonesia, Brazil, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Japan put together [1214.3 million], the silver lining is that 2001-2011 is the first decade with the exception of 1911-1921 which has actually added lesser population compared to the previous decade. • Among the States and Union Territories, Uttar Pradesh is the most populous state with 199 million people followed by Maharashtra at 112 million people and Lakshadweep is the least populated at 64,429 persons. Related Concepts: (Note: MPSC has canceled this question in its final answer key) Clarification: As per the Indian Census Report, 2011 the percentage of the Indian population in the population of the world is 17.5%. As per the UN data, India's 2020 population is estimated at 17.7% of the total world population.