NHRC calls for reports from centre, states over declining sex ratio at birth

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New Delhi : The National Human Rights Commission ( NHRC) has taken suo motu cognisance of a media report that has raised serious issue of abysmal sex ratio across the country specifically in the southern states. As per news report, the data collated by the Office of the Registrar General of India from the Civil Registration System (CRS) reveals that in 2016, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan states had the worst sex ratio at birth (SRB) of 806. In Tamil Nadu, which had sex ratio of 935 in 2007, it came down to 840 compared to the all India figure of 877. The Karnataka, as mentioned in the news report, has fallen from 10,04 to 896 and in Telengana it stands at 881.

Expressing its serious concerns on the reported drastic decline of the ratio at birth, the NHRC has issued notices to the Secretary, Ministry of Women & Child Development, Government of India, New Delhi, and Chief Secretaries of all the States and Union Territories calling for a detailed report in the matter indicating the status of implementation and monitoring mechanism of the various welfare schemes launched on the subject.

The Commission has also invited comments of the State governments and UT’s along with their suggestions, if any, to improve the sex ratio at birth, across the country, besides sharing of best practices for proper reporting/ registration of births.  The response is expected within six weeks.

The Commission has observed that it is aware that the Central as well as State governments have announced and implemented various schemes to create awareness among the general public to save the girl child and improve the gender equation but the data reflected in the instant news report, gives a different picture. If the data reflected in the news report is correct, it seriously affects gender equality besides the fact that Constitution of India prohibits discrimination in any form including sex, which ultimately violates human rights of the weaker sections of the society i.e. girl and women and therefore, there is a need for immediate attention and action by the Union as well as State governments.

According to the media report, carried on  January 20, 2019, most of States have achieved near 100 per cent registration of births hence, and it cannot be said that all the cases of birth of girl children are not being reported. The data with regard to the State of Tamil Nadu is more alarming because it has been lower than the all India figure. The inadequate sex ratios have generally been associated with the States like Haryana and Punjab but the present data indicates that the scenario is worse in South India. Only the State of Kerala could manage to have the highest SRB and in 2016 it reached 954.

The news report quoting statement of an Activist, who has worked for decades on the issue of falling sex ratio, explaining that while declining CRB in southern states is a matter of concern and a reality, they seem too low in 2016. The activist has reportedly opined that there is a problem in the birth registration system and all the cases of birth of children are not being registered in these States, which is pulling overall ratio down. The news report states that during the period 2007-16, the States like Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Maharashtra along with Delhi and Assam, have significantly improved but other States like West Bengal, Odisha, Jammu & Kashmir and Goa are slipping downwards.

It also states that in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, SRB has fallen from 924 to 827 and 932 to 885, respectively but there is another factor which is to be considered. With just 60 per cent birth registration, in these states, these numbers may not give an accurate picture. The Madhya Pradesh too had just about 75 per cent of registration of birth. The SRB in Madhya Pradesh stands between 904 and 909 while it touched 938 in 2009. The Gujarat state, as per news report, has 100 per cent registration and the ratio has fallen steadily from 905 in 2009 to 886 in 2014 while the data for the years 2015 and 2016 is not available. The news report also reveals that Chhattisgarh is the only large State to record a higher ratio of 980, according to an NHRC release.