Make provision for marriage of girls in budget: Azad to states

New Delhi, Sep 28 (PTI) Indian Health Minister Ghulam
Nabi Azad Wednesday asked the states to make budgetary
provisions for schemes aimed at funding marriages of girls as
a long-term measure to prevent female foeticide.
Addressing a gathering of health ministers of 18 states
which have the lowest child sex ratio (0 to 6 years) in the
country, Azad said female foeticide is a political, social
and economic problem and urged every state government to
formulate special schemes in their forthcoming budgets to fund
the marriage of girls.
He said there is a direct link between the practice of
sex selection and that of dowry.
"This (female foeticide and sex selection) is a social
problem. Parents are concerned about how they will pay the
dowry; who will marry their daughters. Many parents have no
money to pay the dowry. Andhra Pradesh has a scheme for the
marriage of poor girls. I request all states to make schemes
to marry girls," said the Minister, known for his ingenious
solutions to complex problems.
He also urged the Health ministers and Health Secretaries
present at the meeting on PC & PNDT Act, 1994, to talk to
their respective Finance Ministers to formulate schemes in
this regard.
Referring to such schemes already in operation in Andhra
Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh, he said,
"Andhra Pradesh has a scheme for the marriage of poor girls.
States like Haryana, Rajasthan and Himachal also have these
schemes but amounts being provided for the marriages need to
be enhanced and encouraged," the Minister said.
Citing low budgets per girl being offered by the schemes
in operation, Azad sought greater outlays.
"Some schemes provide Rs 20,000 per girl for the purpose
of marriage. It should be at least Rs 50,000 in these
inflationary times. States that have the scheme must improve
upon them and those that have none must come up with one," he
said.
"The 2011 Provisional Census figures have served as a
wake-up call for all of us. The misuse of medical technology
for pre birth sex selection is evidently increasing", he
noted, as the number of girls in the age group of 0-6 years
now stands at a mere 914 for every 1000 boys.
Terming the declining child sex ratio in most of the
states as a matter of grave national concern, he underlined
the need to arrest the gender imbalance and said Wednesday's
meeting could have a bearing on the future of the nation.
Among states that attended the meeting were Delhi with a
sex ratio of 866 girls per 1000 boys; Madhya Pradesh with 912;
Daman and Diu with 909; UP with 899; Maharashtra with 883;
Rajasthan with 883 and Uttarakhand with 886. The worst in the
lot were also present including Haryana (with the lowest child
sex ratio of 830 in India); Punjab (846), Chandigarh (867),
Jammu and Kashmir (859).
The Minister expressed grave concern over the practice of
female foeticide saying the country now had 18 vulnerable
states as against just nine as per the last Census. The
provisional data for Census 2011 had revealed how the hitherto
gender-neutral states and UTs like Chhattisgarh, Meghalaya,
Puducherry and Dadra and Nagar Haveli had also reported
shockingly low sex ratios.
"The situation is extremely worrisome. Mere implementation
of the PC and PNDT act will not help. Information and
education of people is equally important," he said.
He also called upon states to implement the changed rules
of notifying DCs instead of CMOs as Appropriate Authority
under the PNDT Act. He also urged the Health ministers to
convene a meeting of DCs every six months to ensure that
proper reporting to female foeticide was done.