Girl child: development or deprivation?

Geeta Malhotra "The registration of pregnancies, specifically in rural areas could provide statistical data on the age of the women at the time of their first pregnancy. This would act as a check also on the age at which the women in the rural areas are bieng married off. Registration of pregnancies would automatically promote registration of births." Home is where all learning begins and the mother is the first teacher of a child. It is the institution of a family that offers a fertile ground for the child to grow and blossom. However, there is a different reality as well. The process of discrimination between the male and the female child starts in the mother’s womb itself. Obsession for a son is deeply entrenched in our society. A number of cultural, social and economic factors influence the relative benefits of sons and daughters and ultimately parents’ gender preference. The factors that underline the ‘preference for a son’ are mainly socio-cultural. In the context of India’s patriarchal society, having a son is imperative for the continuation of family lineage. It is also because only the son can perform certain religious and family rites. Besides he is expected to provide economic and emotional support to the family especially during the old age of the parents. Factors responsible for the declining child sex ratio Child sex ratio is governed by a number of factors. Some of the key factors which influences the child sex ratio in our society are: Prevalence of dowry custom and the financial pressure on the parents Socio-economic and cultural factors, physical insecurity; domestic violence Easily accessible and affordable procedures for sex determination during pregnancy Unethical medical practices Two-child norm policy of the central and the state governments The right of the girl child to be born is not in the hands of the mother who is going to give birth. Rather the family members decide it. The raring of the girl child at home has a different blueprint than the boy, irrespective of whether the family is rich or poor. The need of the hour is not only to change the environment, the mindset, and the other sociocultural factors responsible for this decline, but also to question the underlying concepts behind the development of the girl child. Child sex ratio in India According to the Census 2001, the decline of the child sex ratio (Figure 1) is not only from the previous census, but the decline has been recorded continuously since 1961. Figure 1 The census in 2001 showed a decline of 18 points in child sex ratio from 945 in 1991 to 927 in 2001. The states and Union Territories (UT) that have shown large declines are Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Gujarat and Delhi (Table 1), though they are economically quite developed and the female literacy rates are also quite high. State 0-6 sex ratio Absolute change 1991 2001 Punjab 875 793 -82 Haryana 879 820 -59 Himachal Pradesh 951 897 -54 Chandigarh 899 845 -54 Gujarat 928 878 -50 Delhi 915 865 -50 India is one of the few countries to have legalised induced abortions under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act in 1972. However, the fact is that the abortion services are being provided on demand by an increased number of registered and unregistered service providers. It is estimated that nearly six million abortions are performed every year outside the ambit of the Act. The Tenth Five Year Plan stresses on the elimination of all forms of gender discrimination so as to enable women “to enjoy not only de jure but also de facto rights and fundamental freedom at par with men in all spheres of life, viz. political, economic, social, civil, cultural etc,” and complete eradication of female foeticide through effective enforcement of the Pre-Conception and Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (PNDT; Prohibition of Sex Selection Act, 1994.) Noticeable efforts have already been put in for the effective implementation of the PNDT Act. Appropriate authorities are in place both at the state and the district level. However, the procedure at the block level varies from state to state. There has been a vigilant drive in place to check sex selective abortions, thanks to the efforts of the Central and the State Government authorities. The need of the hour is that the advocacy programmes undertaken at the policy level should percolate to the grassroots level, for a revamp in the mindsets of the masses. There is a need to mainstream female foeticide as a human right and development issue in the public discourse. The importance of the girl child should be discussed in the public meetings, committee meetings, schools, panchayats, religious places and other fora on a regular basis. The issue of female foeticide should be linked with other relevant issues, such as the importance of birth, death and pregnancy registration. Every new life has the right to ‘name’ and ‘identity’. Unfortunately, millions of births go unregistered due to the lack of public awareness, even though the government programme for proper registration mechanism has improved. The government’s efforts need support from civil society organisations that are working on these issues. The Registration of Births and Deaths Act 1969 has provided a strong framework for a sound registration system in the country. The right to be registered at birth has also been endorsed by Article 7 of the Convention on the Right of the Child endorsed by the United Nations in 1989. The Government of India acceded to this Convention on December 11, 1992. The question of pregnancy registration is also vital to strengthen the vigilance against sex selective abortions. How can the ICTs help towards strengthening such mechanisms? A number of organisations are applying Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) in their fight against female foeticide. For instance Datamation Foundation, an NGO in India, has shown that ICTs can help in the formation of a network of organisations working to prevent female foeticide. The following processes can be strengthened through ICTs: Digitising the process of registration of births, deaths and pregnancies at the grassroots level. Civil society organisations could come forward to support the mechanism. The registration of pregnancies, specifically in rural areas could provide statistical data on the age of the women at the time of their first pregnancy. This would act as a check also on the age at which the women in the rural areas are being married off. Registration of pregnancies will automatically promote registration of births. Because of low literacy levels, registration of pregnancy helps the woman to have access to other important information in relation to the caring and rearing of the child; her own nutritional status during pregnancy; proper immunisation of her own and of the new born child; delay of the second child by practicing various family planning methods. This information could be provided through knowledge centers, which could also be used for the support mechanism. ICTs can help in promoting at least three ante-natal check-ups including regular monitoring of the growth of the foetus. ICTs can help in promoting institutional deliveries. Strengthening the follow-up mechanism of the registered pregnancies at the second antenatal check up, where the chances of sex selective abortions are strong, especially with the women whose first child is a female. Linkages could be developed at the village, block and district level and coordination committees could be set up to follow the system effectively. Strategies to fight female foeticide can include collection of data on clinics and doctors who provide this illegal service, lobbying for action against them, identification of individuals and responding with counselling or legal action, as considered appropriate. Besides traditional forms of communication are powerful tools that can take positive messages about the girl child through songs, street theatre, puppet shows and posters to communities, self help groups, schools, fairs or ‘melas’ in a non-threatening, cheerful manner. Dissemination about recent affirmative action in the law, upholding equal rights of daughters and sons to property with a view to awareness raising and ensure better implementation are some of the ways in which ICTs can be used. Author: Geeta Malhotra is the Programme Manager – Grassroots Communication, at OneWorld South Asia.

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