Gender preference

Girl child continues to face discrimination

Socio-economic advancement, better educational facilities for women, and extensive government programmes have improved health outcomes for girls and narrowed the gender gap in child health inputs and outcomes. However, India still has to go a long way. A new research paper — published recently by the National Council of Applied Economic Research, which explores various dimensions of differential investment in sons and a fertility preference to have sons — could be useful in framing policies in this context. The data from the National Family Health Survey reveals India has closed most of the gender gap in child investment over time,