1. DOWN WITH LOW
CHILD SEX RATIO-
CHALLENGES
AHEAD
- Dr.Gulrukh Hashmi

2. Overview
 Definition
 Sex ratio in world
 Sex ratio trends in India
 Causes
 Consequences
 Prevention
 PNDT act
 National policy recommendation
 Communication strategy development
 Summary

3. Child sex ratio i.e the sex ratio in
age group 0 to 6 years is defined
as number of females per 1000
males.
What is child sex ratio?

6. Trends in Child Sex Ratio
State/UTs Child Sex Ratio
(0-6 yrs)2001
Child Sex Ratio
(0-6 yrs)2011
Change in CSR
(0-6 yrs) 2001 to
2011
India 927 914 -13
Haryana 819 830 +11
Punjab 798 846 +48
J & K 941 859 -82
Delhi 868 866 -2
Rajasthan 909 883 -26
Maharashtra 913 883 -30
Uttarakhand 908 886 -22
Gujarat 883 886 +3

7. Trends in child sex ratio
State/Uts Child Sex Ratio
(0-6 yrs)2001
Child Sex Ratio
(0-6 yrs)2011
Change in CSR
(0-6 yrs) 2001 to
2011
Mizoram 964 971 +7
Meghalaya 973 970 -3
A&N 964 966 +2
Puducherry 967 965 -2
Chattisgarh 975 964 -11
Arunachal Pradesh 961 960 -1
Kerala 960 959 -1
Assam 965 957 -8
Tripura 966 953 -13

9. Causes for declining sex ratio
 Biological
• Differing masses of the X- and Y- Chromosomes.
• Y Chromosome carried by sperm is lighter .
• “Male" sperm will reach and fertilize the egg slightly more
often
 Social
 Son preference
 Girl child aversion

10. Causes for low child sex ratio

11. Percentage of women who wants
more sons

12. Reasons for son preference
1. Continuation of family name
2. Desire to keep the wealth with in the family, through
sons
3. Help on farms and in family business.
4. Attracting dowry
5. To take care in the old age
6. To carry out the rituals

13. Reasons for declining trends
 Impact of family planning operation
 Economic considerations
1. Menace of dowry
2. To find suitable grooms
3. Discrimination against women in socio economic activities

14. Reasons for declining trends
WORK PARTICIPATION OF CHILDREN

15. Impact of worsening ratio
 According to the
most recent
estimates, China and
India account for
nearly 80 per cent of
all ‘missing women’
in the world.”

16. Impact of worsening ratio
 Societal effects
 It is estimated that by 2020 there could be more
than 25 million young 'surplus males' in India
 The loss of the 'natural balance' will result in a skewed
society.

17. Impact of worsening ratio
Ethical Concerns
 Sexual violence
 Trafficking
 Abuse
 Psychological implications
 Problems may arise if the gender-related expectations
of the parents are not subsequently fulfilled

19. Prevention
 Family level:
 Equal emphasis on health and education
 Community level:
 A determined drive to aware the general public about the
importance of bringing up the girl child and giving her equal
status
 National level:
 Stringent measures to curb selective abortions and dowry
deaths and the practice of taking dowry .

20. PNDT Act 1996
 The Act provides
 prohibition of sex selection, before or after conception,
 regulation of pre-natal diagnostic techniques for the purposes
of detecting genetic abnormalities or metabolic disorders or
sex-linked disorders
 prevention of their misuse for sex determination leading to
female foeticide
 matters connected therewith or incidental thereto

22. Key considerations:
 Gender equality
 Intersectoral planning and co ordination
 Safeguarding reproductive rights and right to safe abortions
 Looking beyond PNDT Act
 Encouraging NGOs to counsel women
 Targeting not only low income but also middle and high
income families

23. Development of communication
strategy
 Identify the target audience
 Focus on youth
 Give messages that challenge the attitude as well as legal
messages
 Active involvement of media
 Grassroot campaigning
 Sensitisation of frontline health workers and prominent public
officials

24. Summary
 7 million fewer girls were born among children of 0-6yrs of age.
 Child neglect coupled with selective abortions are largely
responsible for this skewed ratio
 Sex ratio is particularly low among couples whose first born is a
daughter
 Serious negative effects on women’s health, fertility choices and
future well being of girls.
 Consideration of interplay of social, economic issues.

25. It will not be enough to counter son-preference.
Aversion to daughters has to be squarely
confronted through policy measures that
increase the economic worth and support of
daughters through improved employment
opportunities and recognizing that women’s
health and education is tied to more than the
mothering roles.
Challenge

26. References
 Children in india 2012- a statistical appraisal. Social Statistics
Division.Central Statistics Office.Ministry of statistics and
Programme Implementation.Government of India.
 Janaki Ramaiah, T. Chandrasekarayya. Declining child sex
ratio in India : Trends, Issues and Concerns. Asia pacific
Journal of Social Sciences,Vol.3(1), Jan-June 2011,183-198.
 R. S. Bora .Imbalance in Child Sex Ratio: Trends, Causes and
Emerging Issues .
 Cheryl S. Rosenfeld, R. Michael Roberts. Maternal Diet and
Other Factors Affecting Offspring Sex Ratio: A Review.
BIOLOGY OF REPRODUCTION 71, 1063–1070 (2004)

27. References
 Declining Child Sex Ratio (0-6 Years) in India. A Review of
Literature and Annotated Bibliography Developed by Centre
for Development Studies United Nations Population Fund,
India.
 Binita Desai, Priti Solanki. What we predict for the sex ratio
in India for the next census 2021? h e a l t h l i n e ISSN 2229-
337X Volume 3 Issue 1 January-June 2012.Page 69.
 Jason Taylor. The Daughter Deficit Exploring Declining Sex
Ratios in India available on www.idrc.ca/women’s right

28. THANK YOU
DOWN WITH
DISCRIMINATION
DOWN WITH LOW CHILD
SEX RATIO
SAY “NO” to
FEMALE EXTERMINATION