Gender ratio: Charkhi Dadri on top, Sirsa maintains 9th position

Sirsa, May 10

According to data released by the Health Department, during April, Sirsa district rose by 14 points in gender ratio, securing the ninth position. In March, the gender ratio was 925 females per 1000 males, which increased to 939 in April. During March, the district was ranked 10th in the state.

According to the district-wise statistics released for the month of April, Charkhi Dadri tops the list again, where out of 1000 boys, 997 girls were born. Meanwhile, Fatehabad ranks second with 972 girls born, followed by Jhajjar in third place with 954 girls.

Mahendragarh and Rohtak rank lowest on this list with 855 and 870 girls born respectively. In April, a total of 164,361 children were born in the state, including 85,791 boys and 78,570 girls. The state’s sex ratio stands at 916 girls per 1000 boys.

Meanwhile in Sirsa, the improvement in gender ratio is attributed to awareness programmes initiated by the department over the past few years, under the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act, 1994 (PNDT Act). At the grassroots level, efforts by ANMs and GNMs are raising awareness among women and their families. Additionally, inspections conducted by the PNDT department in neighbouring states like Punjab and Rajasthan have significantly improved the situation by monitoring prenatal sex determination.

To prevent pre-birth gender testing, the Health Department formed PNDT teams, which have conducted a total of 59 inspections since 2014. Dr Bharat Bhushan, PNDT in-charge, reported that based on these inspections, 56 FIRs have been filed against those conducting prenatal sex determination in various locations.