Girl child sex ratio in India has fallen to 919 in 2011: Report

The decline in the ratios among the SC/ST comes as matter of worry especially for the groups and individuals working on the issue of. sex selection. The SC ratios show drop of five from 938 in 2001 and the ST ratio stands at 957 showing a steep decline from 973 in the previously held census in 2001.

In Lucknow a group of social activists and committee members of the Pre-conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act held a consultation meet to share the status report of the Act. PCPNDT Act was introduced in 1994 as a measure to prohibit sex selection among the Indian population.

The meeting was headed by Dr. Sabu George,a member of National Investigation and Monitoring committee (NIMC). NIMC is a statutory body set up to investigate and monitor the implementation of the PCPNDT Act. Dr. Sabu has been working on the issue of sex selection and PCPNDT Act implementation for almost two decades.”The sex selection among the SC/ST is rising as compared to that of middle classes” he said.

Sabu added “Sex selection among the middle classes was always on the rise but the minorities like Dalits and Muslims were not as affected as the middle classes”.  

Subhashini Ali,president of the All India Democratic Women’s Association and a member of State Investigation and Monitoring committee in Uttar Pradesh also had similar thoughts on the decline of girl child sex ratio among the SC/ST population.

“Sex selection previously being a commonality among the middles classes has now permeated among Dalit and Muslim communities and UP is among the few states which portrays a disturbing picture” she said in the meeting. 

According to Subhashini,the tendencies of vulnerable communities to look up to middle classes have resulted in social pressures for such communities. “Every family now wants a boy instead of a girl just because spending on a girl’s education and her needs is considered to be wasteful”,she added.

According to several committee members based in India,the issue of sex selection may acquire a back seat due to the coming elections.  The committee members fear that the country is facing a number of problems and prioritizing certain issues may automatically neglect social practices such as gender inequality.