Female foeticide refers to aborting a female fetus after determining its sex. It is caused by an obsession for sons to avoid dowry payments and the perception of girls as financial burdens. This has led to a decline in the female population ratio and adverse health, emotional, and social consequences for women. While laws like the PNDT Act have been implemented to regulate sex-selective abortions, the practice of female foeticide continues in India due to social and economic factors like dowry.

1. FEMALE FOETICIDE

2. WHAT IS FEMALE FETICIDE?
 It is defined as aborting a female foetus after sex
determination test.
 Ultra-sonography and Foetoscopy helps
determine abnormalities in the fetus. But it is
misused to find out sex of the fetus and abortion is
done if it is a girl.

3. CAUSES OF FEMALE FETICIDE
Obsession for Son.
 Fear of dowry by many poor class families.
Girls are considered as financial
obligation by many parents.
Advancement in technology , nowadays
parent determines the sex of a child before
birth.
 Some of the doctors do this heinous act to fulfill
their money
desire.

4. CONSEQUENCES OF FEMALE FETICIDE
 Decrease in the female population.
 Adverse effect on women's health physically ,
mentally and emotionally.
 Women are abused and sexually exploited.
 Leads to women trafficking . Women are kidnapped
, bought and sold for marriage.
 Suicide rates in women will increase.

5. FEMALE FETICIDE IN INDIA
 The child sex ratio has dropped from 945 females
per 1000 males in 1991 to 927 females per 1000
males in 2001.
 Estimated that 50 million girls and women are
‘missing’ from India’s population because of
termination of the female foetus.
 Female foeticide in India increased by 49.2%.

7. SEX RATIO – AGE GROUP (0-6 YRS)
1000
950
900
850
800
750
960
933
880
850 846
820
Females per 1000 males

8. 909
894
885
867
876

9.  Dowry (known as Dahej ) is a payment of cash or gifts from
the bride's family to the bridegroom's family upon marriage.
 Groom demands the bride’s father to provide money for
his daughter’s maintenance as she is now a financial
‘burden’ on him.
 When the dowry amount is not considered sufficient the
bride is often harassed ,
abused and even killed.
 It is estimated that a dowry death occurs in India
every 93 minutes.
EVIL OF DOWRY

11. LEGAL INITIATIVES
 The Prenatal Diagnostic Test Act (PNDT
Act)
 The Medical Termination Of Pregnancy Act
 The Dowry Prohibition Act

12. THE PRENATAL DIAGNOSTIC TEST ACT
(PNDT ACT) OF 1994
 ThisAct was enacted in the year 1994 in all of the states
in India , but it came into force in the year 1996.
 Through thisAct the use of pre-natal diagnostic
techniques is prohibited and regulated.
 PNDTAct was amended in 2003 with its main aim to to
ban the use of sex-selection techniques as well as the
misuse of pre-natal diagnostic techniques for sex-
selective abortions .
 More than 21,600 centres conducting pre-natal
diagnostic procedure have been registered.

13. THE MEDICAL TERMINATION OF
PREGNANCY ACT, 1971
 Wasenacted by the Indian Parliament in the year 1971
and came into force in 1972 .
 As per India’s abortion laws only qualified doc stipulated
conditions, can perform abortion on a woman in an
approved clinic or hospital.
 The Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act
of India clearly states the conditions under which a
pregnancy can be ended or aborted .
Year 1972 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2003 2007 2010
Numberof
abortions
reported
24300 214197 388405 583704 581215 570914 723142 1229937 1895721 2529979

14. THE DOWRY PROHIBITION ACT, 1961
m
 Prohibits the request, payment or acceptance of a
dowry, demanded or given as a precondition for a
marriage.
 Asking or giving of dowry can be punished by an
imprisonment of up to six months, or a fine of up to
Rs. 5000.
 Indian government has modified property
inheritance laws and permitted daughters to clai
equal rights to their parental property.

15. MY VERDICT
We as well educated and aware citizens can bring a change.
 The government should implement stern policies against this by
removing the child sex recognizing centers and banning their
licenses.
 The family who are involved in this act sholud be fined with some
cash amount and sent to the jail for a minimum of 2 years.
 Higher status should be provided to women by involving them in
the high profile jobs and including special reservation policies for
women.
 Higher education should be provided to women so that they can
take decisions for themselves.