Workshop on Sex Selection (Female Foeticide)
Workshop on Sex Selection (Female Foeticide) Organized jointly by BCF and CWDS
27th January 2005
The programme began with a welcome address by Mr N S Katoch General Manager Corporate Affairs, Cadbury India Ltd on behalf of BCF. He emphasized that the objective of the workshop is to share the facts on "missing" girls, explore the medical, legal and social dimensions relating to sex selection and thereafter to have an in-depth discussion on how can we all join hands to work towards ameliorating the situation. Civil society, corporates, foundations and institutions need to recognize the enormity of the looming genocide and work with other stakeholders to ensure that girls do have the right to be born in our country.
The first morning session was chaired by Mr Mathew Cherian, CEO Helpage. He stated that earlier female infanticide was widely prevalent, which meant the safety of the unborn girl child was not a major issue of concern. Over the years, the situation has worsened with ever increasing female foeticide in the country. The speakers for this session were Mr J K Banthia, Managing Director, Maharashtra Petrochemicals Industries Ltd and Ms Karuna Bishnoi, Child Rights Specialist UNICEF.
Elaborating on the situation of girls and female foeticide as per the census report Mr Banthia began his presentation with a film, titled KALCHAKRA in Marathi depicting discrimination against girls, which still exists in this 21st century. He opened the house with a question "The law does its bit how much does the civilization do?" He pointed out that at birth there are 942 - 955 girls per thousand boys, which does not augur well for the child sex ratio in the country. The 1991 figures project that there were 407 females for every 439 males while in 2001 it was 496 females for every 532 males.
Female foeticide is predominantly prevalent in the states of Punjab and Haryana apart from Delhi, Gujrat, Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Rajasthan ,Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu Coming to a religion wise segregation Hindus are better off where as Sikhs and Jains are worst offenders. While giving statistics city wise Mr Banthia pointed out that the capital needs immediate attention and specifically South Delhi. Latest birth registration information (January to June 2004) show South Delhi having the worst sex ratio with 762 girls for every 1000 boys. This ratio implies that at least one in five girls is eliminated before birth in the elite part of our city.
He concluded by saying that " It's a silent crime that is taking place day in and day out and we are all silently watching it and its high time we all come together as the day of the reckoning has arrived".
Ms Karuna Bishnoi began her presentation by stating the mission of UNICEF. She stated that in the 10th five year plan, (excerpt from chapter1,) that female foeticide is stated to be a real and pervasive problem in the country. In the last decade 70% of our districts showed decline in the sex ratio, 35% of which is below national average.
Imbalanced sex ratios are an indication of deep-rooted gender bias which undermines the right to life of girls. Declining sex ratios contribute to:
- Girls being married at younger age.
- Increased numbers of child brides further contribute to the poor status of women, as they are less likely to finish school or develop job skills before marriage.
- Young brides and their children are more likely to suffer from increased morbidity and mortality associated with early childbirth.
- Increase in acts of violence against girls and women, e.g., rape, abduction, trafficking etc.
- Loss of women is likely to have negative consequences on the economy since women are a vital part of India's labour force.
The second morning session was chaired by Dr Puneet Bedi, foetal medicine specialist, Apollo Hospital. The speaker for this session was Dr Satish Agnihotri, Principal Sectetary, Women & Child Development Department, Govt of Orissa.
Dr Agnihotri pointed out that there is a fairly large area of the country, which has extremely low sex ratio, which is as less as below 800. There has been a romantic notion that the north has always had low sex ratio as compared to the south. But to our dismay the gap has been bridged. Earlier it was infanticide by various methods like putting a sandbag on the infant or putting rice grain in her throat or drowning her in a milk pot or putting the leg of the cot on the child. But with times techniques have got modernized and a more sophisticated method of abortion is used for killing the fetus even before she sees the light of this world.
He gave a comparative analysis of the state of Orissa between 1991 and 2001. In the year 1991, the female to male ratio (FMR) was 941 and even lower in the eastern part of the state mainly Kendrapara and Jagatsinghpur. In 2001, in the rural area it was still below 941 but in the urban areas it was below 900. The thrust is in the urban areas for the numbers of sex selection clinics are more in the urban parts of the country. If one was to link female foeticide with prosperity, in the bottom 5 percent rural income group the girls to boys ratio is 946 per 1000 boys. While in the top 5% rural income group the sex ratio is 804 girls per 1000 boys In the bottom 5% urban income group it is 903 whereas it is 819 in the top 5% urban income group.
The model of social development being practiced is based on unequal distribution of easy money through a criminal act of detecting sex. This crime can also be connected with the inherent attitude of son preference and daughter disdain.
Dr Agnihotri ended his presentation by pointing out that corporate responsibility lies in creating equal work opportunities for women and provide them with safe working environment.
The first afternoon session was chaired by Dr Sabu M George of Centre for Women Development Studies (CWDS). The speaker for this session was Dr Puneet Bedi foetal medicine specialist, Apollo Hospital.
Dr Bedi gave an in-depth presentation of the association of the medical fraternity with the issue of missing girls. He defined ethics as a discipline dealing with what is good and bad and with moral duties and obligations. The medical council of India [MCI] is the prime institution governing medical conduct in this country. There has also been an Act passed in this regards, which is Ethical Position (Professional Conduct Etiquette and Ethics) Regulation 2002.
One of the main limitations of MCI has been that it is a council of medically qualified people and is supposed to be the regulating body but has done nothing to curb the malpractice of sex selection. Earlier it was the dais who used to kill the girl foetus and thus carry out the wish of the family. But now the doctors do it in a much more sophisticated manner.
The discussion, which followed this presentation mainly, was regarding how this malpractice be curbed. Answering this Dr.Puneet Bedi said that control, has to come from the civil society. Complete audit needs to be conducted and the society needs to catch the criminals. But how can then these bodies be revamped was the question that followed. Dr Bedi said that only if non-doctors head the council could this issue be addressed. A layperson cannot decide the precision of a surgery but can surely decide about the ethical part of conducting it. Even if people say that it is the group of quacks who perform sex selection tests, then one should be aware that sex selection devices couldn't be bought without showing the registration of doctors.
The next presentation was also by Dr.Puneet Bedi on medical profession and missing girls. Amniocentesis holds a great promise, which has been made and kept, in this country. The role of technology has been bloated in the sense that it has improved healthcare and reduced cost but no real evaluation as regards to it's usefulness has been done.
Ultrasonography has various sides to it. Who needs it, what information does one derive out of it and how does one use it? Is it safe? Does it need to be done on a routine basis and how much should be paid for it?
In India many are not aware that ultrasound is not compulsory but optional. The health of the baby does not get affected by it. There is another method called Doppler ultrasound. It shows 3D pictures of the foetus. Ultrasonography should only be done in case of high-risk pregnancy. But it has been linked with miscarriages and lower birth rates.
The discussion following this presentation threw light on certain myths, which revolve around this issue. Firstly that sex selection will contribute towards population control. The second is the two children norm for qualifying to stand for election in some states for the Panchayat. It is actually detrimental, for as they can have only two children they go on killing the fetus till it is a son.
Dr Sabu George spoke about corporate responsibility to ensure birth of girls. His presentation was filled with real life examples of how corporates have been neglecting their responsibility towards the society. It is not the sex ratios, which are a cause of concern but the determination of sexes, which leads to unfavorable sex ratios.
There has been quite a number of corporates in India who have come from outside. One of the most well known of them has been GE. During 1995-96 it became dominant by capturing a huge market share. It was selling the ultrasound machines to just anybody who had money whereas in the US they were only allowed to sell them to the doctors. A court amendment was needed to stop them from carrying this further. When Jack Welch, the celebrated CEO of GE was questioned on his intent of coming to India and exploiting the low cost labour which he had been doing in other south east Asian countries, he answered that it was the bright engineering talent which induced him to invest here. But as the reality goes the intention was surely not on these lines. GE even opened up another company called GE FINANACE along with SBI to finance the purchase of the ultrasound machines at low interest rates. The corporation even started manufacturing lighter and portable machines, which could be easily transported.
The court intervened in December 2001 and asked the company to give them the list of places where they have been selling the machines. Data revealed that largest number of machines have been sold in the states of Punjab and Haryana. Seeing that the machines were actually abused for the elimination of the girl child, the court came up with stringent rules.
Coming to an Indian corporate WIPRO also manufactures ultrasound machines but then they are all prompt to protect their social picture as Azim Premji was the first corporate big shot to come out in the media and express sorrow for the Gujrat carnage but he seems to be unaware that a silent genocide has been going on through the ultrasound machines that his company has been manufacturing.
The media seem to be joining the bandwagon too. In October 2001, the Times of India carried an advertisement of a company named GENSELECT, which was offering a product with no scientific validity. It had a separate kit for boys and girls. The advertisement came out for three times in October and then they also came out with an editorial defending the company and the product. A few women's organizations protested and staged a demonstration in front of the TOI office and then the intervention of legal bodies led TOI to submit a written apology stating that they would not come out with such an advertisement again.
The possible solution is to make these technological crimes as expensive and disgraceful as possible. The corporates should look at a broader perspective for development. Media houses should prevent their own selves from coming out with gender sensitive advertisements. There should be collaboration across sectors to stop this crime from going on.
The second afternoon session was chaired by Dr Reena George, Advocate Supreme Court. The speakers for this session included Dr SK Singh from Sambhav, NGO in Gwalior, Dr Prem Choudhury from Nehru Memorial Museum and Library and Ms Anitha Shenoy, Advocate Supreme Court.
Dr Singh talked about community development project in rural areas in Malanpur district of Gwalior, a joint initiative between BCF and Cadbury India Ltd.
The sex ratio seems to be below 900 in Madhya Pradesh. The situation seems to be very bad in the Guna district where poor people carry on with female infanticide. One of the focuses of the Sambhav project has been to address the issue of female foeticide. They organized camps so as to build in a sense of solidarity among the women folk. Leadership development was done among the women and girls to develop confidence among them. Ample economic recognition was given to women.
Dr Singh further pointed out that in order to combat growing menace of female foeticide, the women movement should be made stronger. There is a need to provide exposure to all NGOS and women groups working for this issue in order to create a strong networking. The girl child education should be promoted. There should be confidence building efforts and creation of opportunities for participation of women in various social activities.
The success of Sambhav can be measured through a few families where the organization's direct involvement prevented female foeticide.
Dr Prem Choudhury talked about the plight of women in Haryana. She said that there are three main causes, which contributes to this heinous crime of female foeticide in Haryana. These are the existence of large number of unmarried men, the crisis of masculinity, which leads to a much more violent conduct towards the women. In Rohtak there is approximately 44% of unmarried men. Polygamy is widely practiced and most of the women related crimes pertain to dowry. Women are bought from Orissa and Bihar and are sexually as well as physically abused. The first generation of illegal children has just surfaced and the inheritance issues are coming out. Moreover, the paternity of many children is very hard to decide for the women who are practically used by men of the same family. They are at times even resold.
Ms Anitha Shenoy gave insights into the Prenatal Diagnostics Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection Act). The PNDT law was enacted in the year 1994. It is a law dealing with pre-natal diagnostic techniques and the related aspects. Initially nothing happened until a few organizations started to protest and filed a public litigation.
The prenatal diagnostics techniques are mainly ultrasound and amniocentesis. The testing is done in three stages - firstly there has to be the genetic counseling center where what is to be done is decided. Then it moves on to the clinic where it is done. Next it goes to the laboratory where it is tested. The requirements regarding registration are that the clinic should have adequate space, adequate equipment and qualified people who can do the test. Some additional training needs to be imparted to these people. It is mandatory that the registered clinics affix their registration certificates outside their offices along with a message that no detection of the sex of the child would be done.
There are supervisory boards at the center, state and the district level. The law states that prenatal diagnostics tests should be medically prescribed and optional but at the same time should not be misused.
The concluding part of the workshop saw a few suggestions and a few facts coming up. It is not only that poor and uneducated people who resort to sex determination tests but also the IAS officers and university professors who opt for it. There is also this complete family notion, which leads to wanting a son.
It was suggested that more such meetings and workshops should be organized to spread awareness and bring people together to work towards some concrete action. There should be a lot more campaigns which need to be organized in the grassroots level like debates, rallies, resource packs be done in local languages and dialects. The medical schools should be targeted to create more and more awareness on the issue.
There should be audits held and guilty people should be severely punished. Service providers should not go free. Softwares might be developed which can automatically count the number of times the machine has been abused. Programmes should be conducted for youth to spread awareness on the PNDT law.
The workshop was concluded with a short note from Mr Simon J Scarff, Chairman BCF. He expressed that female foeticide is not a caste or a class problem, it is a pan India phenomena. Raising awareness through any means possible seemed to be the best option available. He suggested that maybe a chat room could be set up on the BCF's website where people from various parts of the country can communicate on a common platform.
