Steep fall in child sex ratio in TN - The Times of India Steep fall in child sex ratio in TNTNN, Apr 2, 2011, 04.18am ISTCHENNAI: The number of girl children in the 0-6 age group in the districts of Ariyalur, Cuddalore, Perambalur and Villupuram has dropped drastically, according to the census 2011 data. The provisional population figures for the state released on Friday have thrown up surprising results. While Dharmapuri, Salem, Theni and Namakkal, identified as high-risk districts in 2001, have shown an increase in the child sex ratio, Ariyalur, Cuddalore, Perambalur, Villupuram and others have seen a drastic decrease. Child sex ratio is defined as the number of females per thousand males in human population in the 0-6 age group.
Ads by GoogleTata NanoNow Less than Rs 3000*/month Drive Home Nano Today! www.Tatananocampaigns.comTry Out Orkut TodayMake New Friends & Find Old Ones Only On Google's Own Social Network www.google.com/Orkut Commenting on this trend, Campaign Against Sex Selective Abortion (CASSA) founder Dr Sabu George said that though the increase in the high-risk districts was a good sign the trend in the other districts was alarming. "Despite a lot of awareness and given that districts like Villupuram and Cuddalore are fairly advanced, the fact that the child sex ratio is falling means that the highly localised practice of female foeticide is happening," he said. He also expressed doubts about the census data for Dharmapuri which showed a drastic decrease in 2001 and now shows a drastic increase. M Jeeva of CASSA said that not only was the CSR of these districts going down but even the sex ratio at birth was decreasing. "CASSA's awareness campaigns have been active in the high-risk districts and that could be a reason for the increase but we still need to look at sex ratio at birth to come to a conclusion," he said. Ranjini K Murthy, an independent researcher in the filed of sex selective abortion, said that in Cuddalore, the practice of dowry was rampant. "The government must implement the Pre Conception and Pre Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act all over the country and abortion should be allowed only in government hospitals," she said. According to state commission for women chairperson S P Sarguna Pandian, more awareness is needed in identified high-risk districts. "Awareness in the high-risk districts of 2001 is the main reason the CSR ther rose this time," she said Villupuram deputy director of health Dr K Krishnaraj said the drop in CSR in the district was not alarming and that it could be a natural phenomenon. "No incidents of female foeticide have been reported in the state. The healthcare facilities in the district have vastly improved. Infant mortality rate and abortion rate have also come down. The health department audits 40-odd scan centres, including government centres, and collects the list of pregnant women who undergo abortions. All the cases analyzed so far had substantial medical reasons to opt for abortion," he said. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "humanrights movement" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/humanrights-movement?hl=en.
