J-K police steps up fight against female foeticide

To check the spread of female foeticide in Jammu and Kashmir, police has sealed as many as 65 ultra-Sonagraphy clinics and arrested five persons for violations under PCPNDT Act this year.
"Police along with health authorities has sealed 65 ultra-Sonagraphy clinics, filed five cases and arrested five persons for violation under Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act 1994," IG Police, Kashmir, Abdul Gani Mir, said.
In a national seminar on declining sex ratio in the state at Kashmir University here, Mir said about 669 inspections of various ultrasound clinics were conducted to check the pre-natal diagnosis of sex and female foeticide.

"Such enforcement, coupled with other measures have helped in improving the sex ratio of girl child to 908 in Jammu and 967 in Kashmir per 1000 boys in 2013," he said.
The IGP said countries like Norway and Finland and states like Kerala have shown that the nations or states with high sex ratio and favouring girls are known to be less corrupt and prosperous, with lesser crime rates and better human development index rankings.
He said the declined sex ratio was a social problem and needs a social remedy and change in the mindset.

The IGP said the government has taken a slew of measures including making it mandatory to include mothers' name in all school records, daughters' names in revenue records, giving share in land holding to daughters under Sharia Act 2007 and sanctioning houses in the name of female members of the households.

Mir said the reservation for women in Pahchayats and enforcing dowry prohibition are also helping in improving the sex ratio.
He also suggested creating software in USG machines that could help track every USG conducted and thereby keep a check on pre-natal diagnosis of the sex.
The seminar was jointly organised by Department of Social Work, University of Kashmir, in collaboration with Jammu and Kashmir State Commission for Women.