'Go to Jaunpur, if you want to get rid of female child'

LUCKNOW: The 'business' of killing unborn daughters has seen a paradigm shift in last one decade. Ten years ago, sex selection was a demand driven act, but now it has changed and seems to be more of supply-driven, feels Dr Neelam Singh, gynaecologist and an activist associated with 'Save the Girl Child' campaign. Singh is also a member of the national body for implementing the provisions of pre conception pre natal diagnostic techniques (prevention of sex selection) (PCPNDT) Act.
Elaborating more on the observation, she said, "At the turn of the century, sex selection was seen as an act restricted to the affluent families in western UP. Accordingly, ultra sound machines were also seen in the well to do western districts. But now, the machines have penetrated into remote eastern and agrarian central districts in the state, dropping enough hints that people are voluntarily opting for sex selection."
What the activist says can be substantiated with data on child sex ratio released in Census 2011, which showed that Balrampur is the only district in the state having a child sex ratio of 968. This means that 968 girls were born over 1,000 boys. In comparison, 13 districts had a CSR of above 950 in 2001. Of the top 10 districts that saw maximum drop in sex ratio, seven were from eastern UP. These are Ballia (45), Siddhartnagar (42), Kushinagar (38), Bahraich (37), Sonbhadra (36), Maharajganj (34) and Azamgarh (33).
"All these districts are individual case studies of trends in declining sex ratio, but most of them substantiate the theory of supply-triggered demand," said Rajesh, a field officer working for Plan. Take the example of Kushinagar. The sex ratio of this district stood at 951 in 1991. It achieved the natural ratio of 954 and stood at 955 in 2001 census. The 2011 census report indicated that the sex ratio slipped by 38 points and stood at 917.
The Annual Health Survey-2011, which was released in 2012 showed a further slip of two points. The survey showed that sex selection was an urban phenomenon in Kushinagar. While the sex ratio of rural Kushinagar was 918, it stood at 694 in the urban parts of the district. So what is the reason for this drastic drop? "The penetration of ultrasound machines and the improving socio-economic condition of the people in this district (Kushinagar has a high concentration of emigrant labourers working in middle-eastern countries) is the possible reason behind the falling sex ration," said Mani Mishra, a local women's rights activist. NGOs say that 'sex-selection' is being publicised by word of mouth. "The centres operate through influential people in the village. Sometimes, health workers, ANMs and ASHAs happen to be the key person. They target vulnerable families - those who have no sons or those having more than one daughter - and drop their contacts. Their initial friendly visits are meant to explain how the technology could be a sure shot guarantee to a son. And the innate preference for sons over daughters takes a family to the doorstep of the ultra sound centre," narrated one of them.
Health activists also revealed that while Kanpur, Lucknow, Allahabad and Varanasi had established 'mandis' for the genocide, fringe districts such as Hardoi (close to Lucknow), Jaunpur (near Varanasi), Barabanki (near Lucknow) and Pratapgarh (near Allahabad) were emerging as equally big centres. There were 150 ultrasound clinics in Jaunpur, 100 such centres are functioning in Pratapgarh. Not to forget the large number of unregistered clinics in these districts. In the words of a doctor who tried to expose the nexus of female foeticide in Jaunpur, said, "Go to Jaunpur, if you want to get rid of a female child."
Activist Anjani Kumar Singh revealed that the crime of sex selection is extremely organised and involves the custodians of law. "I would say that people indulging in the crime are no less than mafia. They work in organised manner in connivance with the government officials. Central teams go and inspect the centres and seal the machines. But, hardly any action is taken against the wrong doers and they roam scot-free with a new strategy to reach out to clients," he stated.
Singh has made a valid point. More than 50 cases have been registered against different people for violating provisions of the PCPNDT Act in the last one decade. However, the rate of conviction is less than 1%.