Celebrate daughters, stop sex selective abortions

Dipali Sharma

It is heartening to see National Family and Health Survey (NFHS) 2019-21 show that there are 1020 women for every 1000 men in India. This is a sharp increase from the figure of 991 in the NFHS 2015-16 data. Much more needs to be done as NFHS 2019-21 still shows gender ratio at birth in the last five years still at 929 female for every 1,000 male, albeit an improvement from the 919 figure on NFHS 2015-16. The child sex ratio figure as per Census 2011 was 914 girls for every 1000 boys, the lowest since Independence. So things seem to be looking up, but we must not lower our guard and let slip the efforts to end discrimination, oppression and violence against girls, women and even those unborn.

Sex determination and sex selective abortions are the most extreme form of violence that women, even before they are born. This is a manifestation of the deeply entrenched patriarchal system prevailing in our country for centuries - a system that considers women as sub-ordinate to men. The manifestations are visible in the preference to have a male child, disregard for girl's health and education, forced early marriages, controlling a woman's reproductive rights and sexuality, dowry deaths, domestic violence, sexual harassments, sexual violence, wage inequalities, old age neglect etc. Methods adopted to eliminate the girl child are sex-selective abortions, female infanticide, and neglect of the girl child resulting in high mortality at a young age. Despite laws on the same, strong enactment of the same and the gender biased mindset of the society remains the key hurdle. Medical technologies, which were introduced to diagnose the abnormalities in the foetus are being misused to determine the sex of the foetus breaching the provisions of the Pre-Conception and Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act-1994 and Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act-1971.

Research carried out by ActionAid Association in 2009 across five states[i], threw deep insights into the issue of skewed sex ratio. Several of these findings were substantiated by the 2011 census data and given the entrenched patriarchal mindset of our society, these remain relevant even today. There exists a strong son-preference cutting across caste, class and different religious communities (with small exceptions). The trend for smaller families is deepening the aversion to daughters and exacerbating discrimination against girls. Amongst poorer areas with less access to technology it is neglect that ensures there are fewer surviving daughters. In urban areas, declining ratios are the product of ‘choices' around the number and sex composition of children and using sex-selection to achieve the desired result.

"The progress of a community is measured by the degree of progress which women have achieved", said Dr Ambedkar almost a century back. A century later, much has been done and achieved towards making gender equality a reality, more so with the many legal provisions protecting and promoting the rights of women and girls in India. Progress has been made when one sees many women today playing key and leading role in diverse fields varying from art and culture, sports, academics to medicine, science and technology etc. That said, the increasing levels of violence, abuse, oppression and discrimination in accessing even basic rights like education, as seen from the recent hijab controversy, cannot be overlooked. The plight of a vast majority of women and girls cutting across caste, class, religion lines struggling for their life and survival, tells a different story. There are millions of girls who do not survive to see the light of the day as they are killed in the womb of their mothers.

The Union Government launched the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao campaign in 2015, after the 2011 census data that highlighted the continuing downward spiral of the child sex ratio. Several schemes and incentives were also introduced to protect and promote the rights of girl children, including the Ladli scheme, Balika Samriddhi Yojana and the Dhanalakshmi Yojna. Beti Bachao Beti Padhao. Campaigns by civil society organisations, including the Beti Zindabad campaign by ActionAid Association have also played a role. While it is heartening to see the reports from the fifth National Health Family, sex detection, sex-selective abortions, medical tourism for sex selective IVF continues unchecked. Laws to check these need to be strengthened and implemented effectively so that they are not flouted with impunity. More importantly, values inculcated in the individuals in the form of personal values and attitudes about the subordinate position of women, will need persistent and long drawn efforts by all - families, the society at large and governments. Creating conducive and encouraging environment for girls and women to pursue education, access health services, earn a livelihood etc through social, legal and political protective mechanisms will enable them to exercise freedom of choice and equality in the society. We need to build the agency of girls and women to provide them full social, economic and political equality not just in statute books but in reality. We need to create a society that celebrates daughters - Beti Zindabad!

https://www.actionaidindia.org/publications/disappearing-daughters/