Karnal dist records improvement of 40 points in sex ratio in a decade

Karnal district has achieved a significant milestone in improving its sex ratio over the past decade after the launch of “Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao” campaign launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi from Panipat. As per data of 2024, Karnal has recorded a sex ratio of 926 girls per 1,000 boys, an improvement of 40 points compared to 886 in 2014.

With this achievement, Karnal now ranks fourth in Haryana in terms of sex ratio. The data reveals a steady rise in the number of girl births until 2018, with the sex ratio reaching 934. It had witnessed a sex ratio of 897 in 2015, 909 in 2016, 922 in 2017.

However, a decline was observed in subsequent years, dropping to 908 in 2019 and further to 900 in 2020. The district recorded a trend of rise in 2021 with a sex ratio of 912, though it faced another dip to 903 in 2022. Encouragingly, the trend reversed in the last two years, with the sex ratio climbing to 908 in 2023 and reaching 926 in 2024.

Despite the overall improvement, the Health Department identified 31 villages in Karnal with alarmingly low sex ratios ranging between 436 and 800. Investigations revealed that several families in these areas prefer having a single child, which often results in gender-based selection. The department has initiated focused interventions in these villages to address the issue, said Dr. Sheenu Chaudhary, Deputy Civil Surgeon of Karnal.

Dr Chaudhary highlighted the importance of consistent efforts, including awareness campaigns, the role of ANMs and ASHA workers, mandatory registration of antenatal cases and strict adherence to the Mother and Child Tracking System. “These measures have been instrumental in improving the sex ratio,” she said.

Over the last decade, the Health Department conducted 46 raids on ultrasound centres and hospitals, exposing illegal sex determination and termination of pregnancies. Of these, 42 raids were successful, with six conducted outside Haryana — five in Uttar Pradesh and one in Punjab. The neighbouring districts of Saharanpur and Shamli in UP emerged as key hubs for illegal sex determination, posing a new challenge for Haryana’s health authorities.

Dr Lokveer, Civil Surgeon, said that Karnal had improved its sex ratio and it was due to the well-coordinated efforts of all staff members, doctors involved in the programme. “In the current year, we have kept a target to improve it further,” said the Civil Surgeon. Deputy Commissioner Uttam Singh lauded the Health Department for its efforts and appealed to the public to support the mission of saving the girl child. He emphasised the need to sustain and enhance ongoing initiatives to ensure further improvement in the district’s sex ratio.