India And The Plague Of Female Feticide

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Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan’s TV reality show Satymev Jayate has now brought the present public attention to the issue of female feticide. The Sunday episode of the programme discussed many critical issues around this threat. Many testimonial stories added life to the programme.

India’s Prime Minister Manmohan Singh called female feticide india’s ‘national shame’. It is still a shameful fact that female feticide does exist in our country. The education level has increased, our technologies have improved and female emancipation is going all around our country but still we are unable to eradicate this threat of female feticide. It is also promising that there is a deliberate effort from many of our states to control female feticide. Gujarat stands as a good example for taking initiatives for such efforts.

TV reality show Satymev Jayate hosted by super star Aamir Khan has now brought the present public attention to the issue of female feticide. The Sunday episode of the programme discussed many critical issues around this threat. Many testimonial stories added life to the programme.

Female feticide is a major threat to our country because it has affected the entire social structure. Why are the girls children unwanted in the society? This issue points to many patriarchal attitudes and constructions of the society. Our society has still a long way to go to eradicate this social problem since it is a problem that comes from the mind sets of the people. The general notion of girl child being a burden has to be changed from the minds of people. But we can’t wait till the whole change occurs. The radical change comes from strong efforts. When awareness alone can’t stop the menace government should take some practical steps

Gujarat’s efforts have been led by the Chief Minister Narendra Modi from when he started the “Beti Bachao’ campaign. His recent appeal to the Kadva Patidar community where the lowest sex ratio in Gujarat exists shows his consistent call against this threat. Modi was presiding over the silver jubilee celebration of Goddess Umiya Temple when he asked people there to take a vow in the holy temple to eliminate female feticide.

Another exemplary step by Gujarat was the strong implementation of the laws. The sex selection and sex-determination was controlled under- The Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act of 1994. Seminars for the district health officers were conducted by Gujarat government in 2006 in order to prepare them to collect evidences against the people who violate PNDT Act.  Beside this Gujarat High Court created directions to block the escapes of this law upon the proposals from senior counsel for government. As per First Post India reports, main directions implemented are given below.

1. Every pregnant woman must be registered with the concerned DHO within two months of pregnancy with a unique code;

2. The Department of Health must issue pregnant women a ‘Mamta’ card without which diagnostic sonography would not be conducted;

3. If a pregnant woman is advised to terminate pregnancy after having conducted an authorized diagnostic sonography, prior permission of the concerned DHO has to be obtained;

4. Within ten days after a diagnostic sonography is conducted, medical practitioners must fill prescribed forms with detailed information on diagnostic sonography and any treatment/operations without disclosing details protected by patient privacy; and

5. The necessary paperwork as prescribed under the PNDT Rules must be submitted by medical practitioners online, in addition to paper filing.

Gujarat health department took good efforts to make these directions reach people. Even this couldn’t stop the female feticide. Some sinful medical practitioners were still ready to break the laws by erasing data from the computer. These counter practices led the government counsel to add Rule 3A in the PNDT. Now government makes sure that any sonography machine has got the non erasable data hard drive. Gujarat also takes further steps by using ‘Silent Observer Tool’ developed by IIT graduates for the existing machines.

All these measures by Gujarat government by using both the laws and awareness have shown a remarkable decrease in the female feticides in Gujarat.  There must be a collaborated effort from all the communities and people to bring a radical change in the attitudes of the people. Decreasing number of female feticide is a positive sign but our efforts must be consistent to bring a result that we hope for. This is not an issue that affects Gujarat alone instead all states of India have to put strong effort together against this menace.