Female Foeticide in Kashmir: 65 USG Clinics Sealed

SRINAGAR: To check the menace of female foeticide in the State, health department officials accompanied by police have sealed 65 Ultra Sonography clinics, filed five cases and arrested five persons for violation under pre-conception and pre-natal diagnostic techniques act 1994.
This was stated by, Inspector General of Police (IGP) AG Mir at a national seminar on declining sex ratio in J&K, in the Kashmir University on Sunday.
The IGP, who chaired the post lunch session of the seminar, said 669 inspections of the ultrasound clinics were conducted this year to check the pre natal diagnosis of sex, and female foeticide.
He said that 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 that the countries like Norway , Finland and states like Kerala have shown that nation states with high sex ratio favoring girls are known to be less corrupt, prosperous, with lesser crime rates and better human development Index rankings. AG Mir said that declined sex ratio is a social problem and asks for a social remedy and change in mindset.
Good policing, sealing of illegal ultra stenography machines raiding of abortion clinics and arrest of medical practitioners involved in the heinous crime of determination of sex are part of the solution, IGP added.
Throwing light on a slew of measures under taken by the government, Mir said that, it has been made 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 households. He further stated reservation for women in pahchayats, enforcing dowry prohibition are helping in improving the sex ratio. He suggested that in-building a software in USG machines will help to track every USG conducted and thereby keep a check on pre-natal diagnosis of sex. This will also help in improving the sex ratio.

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