PIP: Periodic benefit-cost analyses of a family welfare program are essential to evaluate its effectiveness and identify areas in need of modification. Such analyses should include both an assessment of the demographic effectiveness of the family planning program and an economic analysis of its results. This paper reports on a benefit-cost analysis of the Family Welfare Program in India. Information is given on family welfare expenditures, the number of sterilzations performed, and the number of births averted in the 1966-79 period. The number of births averted was highest in 1972-73 (101.40 lakhs) and 1976-77 (259.90 lakhs), the 2 years in which the greatest number of sterilizations were performed. The benefit-cost ratio has declined from 82.06 to 7.05 in the 1966-79 period. This ratio was derived from data on family welfare expenditures and the value of averted births. The benefit-cost ratio growth rate has been -17%, indicating that benefits are not increasing with increases in expenditures. Projections for the 1980-2001 period suggest that the benefit-cost ratio will slightly increase to 11.31 in 1980-81 but again gradually decline to 8.75 by 2001. It is noted that this analysis fails to consider the impact of the family welfare program on productivity, capital accumulation, health status, and nutritional status, all of which have represented important assests. On the other hand, the average annual population growth rate of 2.23% indicated by the 1981 Census clearly points to a need to increase the number of family planning acceptors in India so that benefits are accelerated.