23 Indian states, UTs fail to implement anti-infanticide law; 1.3 million girls are found missing per year: Report

By A Representative
The Asian Centre for Human Rights (ACHR), in its new report, “The State of the PC&PNDT Act: India’s losing battle against female foeticide”, which focuses on the on the status of implementation of the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PC&PNDT) Act, 1994, has said that the Act has not been implementation in 23 States/UTs, even as 1.3 million girls are found to be “missing” every year.
The 290-page report says, “More cases of infanticide under Indian Penal Code were registered than cases under the PC&PNDT Act during 1994-2014, and this exposes abysmal implementation of the PC&PNDT Act.”
Pointing out that “India registered 2,266 cases of infanticide under Section 315 and Section 316 of the Indian Penal Code against 2,021 cases under the PC&PNDT Act during 1994-2014.”, the report says, “During 1991 to 2011, a total of 25.5 million girls, i.e. 1.3 million girls per year, went missing primarily because of the sex selection.”
“As only 2,021 court and police cases were filed from 1994 to 2014 under the PC&PNDT Act, it implies that on an average only one court case was filed approximately for 12,614 cases of sex selection:, the report notes, adding, “As conviction was secured only in 206 cases during 1994-2014, it also implies that only one conviction was secured per 1,23,755 cases of sex selection.”
The report further says, “As many as 17 out of 29 States and six out of seven Union Territories (UTs) had either not registered any case or failed to secure any conviction under the PC&PNDT Act as on date”, adding, “All these states are covered under the Beti Bachao Beti Padao scheme, the flagship programme launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to arrest the falling Child Sex Ratio (CSR) under the age of 0-6 years.”
According to the report, the states and UTs which had not secured a single conviction under the PC&PNDT Act since 1994 are Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura, Andaman & Nicobar Island, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Daman & Diu, Lakshadweep and Puducherry, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Jharkhand, Karnataka , Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand and West Bengal and Union Territories of Chandigarh.
Out of these, it adds, Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura, Andaman & Nicobar Island, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Daman & Diu, Lakshadweep and Puducherry had not registered a single case under the PC&PNDT Act since 1994.
Regretting that “the Child Sex Ratio (CSR) is all set to fall further from 919 as per 2011 census to below 900 as per the current sex ratio at birth being registered by the Sample Registration System (SRS) Statistical Report”, the report criticizes governments for under-reporting "actual number of missing girls due to sex selection.”
The report takes strong except to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare's proposed amendments to the PC&PNDT Act in March 2016, which seeks to “weaken the Act further at the insistence of the medical lobby.”
“The proposed amendment seeks to restrict the scope and operation of Section 23 (1) only to cases where the accused medical professional 'indulges in or assists or aids sex determination/selection or for conducting pre-natal diagnostic techniques on any person for the purposes other than those specified in sub-section (2) of Section 4', while the existing provision of Section 23 (1) covers contravention of 'any of the provisions of this Act or Rules made thereunder',” the report says.
It adds, “Once the proposed amendment is allowed, the irregularities in record keeping as per Form F which are part and parcel of sex selective tests would escape the rigours of the existing Section 23 as the prosecutors shall have to prove indulgence in or assistance or aiding sex determination/selection or for conducting pre-natal diagnostic techniques by the accused medical professionals or diagnostic centers/clinics. ”

Comments

'Threat to farmers’ rights': New seeds Bill sparks fears of rising corporate control

By Bharat Dogra As debate intensifies over a new seeds bill, groups working on farmers’ seed rights, seed sovereignty and rural self-reliance have raised serious concerns about the proposed legislation. To understand these anxieties, it is important to recognise a global trend: growing control of the seed sector by a handful of multinational companies. This trend risks extending corporate dominance across food and farming systems, jeopardising the livelihoods and rights of small farmers and raising serious ecological and health concerns. The pending bill must be assessed within this broader context.

Delhi Jal Board under fire as CAG finds 55% groundwater unfit for consumption

By A Representative A Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India audit report tabled in the Delhi Legislative Assembly on 7 January 2026 has revealed alarming lapses in the quality and safety of drinking water supplied by the Delhi Jal Board (DJB), raising serious public health concerns for residents of the capital.

Zhou Enlai: The enigmatic premier who stabilized chaos—at what cost?

By Harsh Thakor* Zhou Enlai (1898–1976) served as the first Premier of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from 1949 until his death and as Foreign Minister from 1949 to 1958. He played a central role in the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for over five decades, contributing to its organization, military efforts, diplomacy, and governance. His tenure spanned key events including the Long March, World War II alliances, the founding of the PRC, the Korean War, and the Cultural Revolution.

Stands 'exposed': Cavalier attitude towards rushed construction of Char Dham project

By Bharat Dogra* The nation heaved a big sigh of relief when the 41 workers trapped in the under-construction Silkyara-Barkot tunnel (Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand) were finally rescued on November 28 after a 17-day rescue effort. All those involved in the rescue effort deserve a big thanks of the entire country. The government deserves appreciation for providing all-round support.

Advocacy group decries 'hyper-centralization' as States’ share of health funds plummets

By A Representative In a major pre-budget mobilization, the Jan Swasthya Abhiyan (JSA), India’s leading public health advocacy network, has issued a sharp critique of the Union government’s health spending and demanded a doubling of the health budget for the upcoming 2026-27 fiscal year.

Pairing not with law but with perpetrators: Pavlovian response to lynchings in India

By Vikash Narain Rai* Lynch-law owes its name to James Lynch, the legendary Warden of Galway, Ireland, who tried, condemned and executed his own son in 1493 for defrauding and killing strangers. But, today, what kind of a person will justify the lynching for any reason whatsoever? Will perhaps resemble the proverbial ‘wrong man to meet at wrong road at night!’

Jayanthi Natarajan "never stood by tribals' rights" in MNC Vedanta's move to mine Niyamigiri Hills in Odisha

By A Representative The Odisha Chapter of the Campaign for Survival and Dignity (CSD), which played a vital role in the struggle for the enactment of historic Forest Rights Act, 2006 has blamed former Union environment minister Jaynaynthi Natarjan for failing to play any vital role to defend the tribals' rights in the forest areas during her tenure under the former UPA government. Countering her recent statement that she rejected environmental clearance to Vendanta, the top UK-based NMC, despite tremendous pressure from her colleagues in Cabinet and huge criticism from industry, and the claim that her decision was “upheld by the Supreme Court”, the CSD said this is simply not true, and actually she "disrespected" FRA.

Why economic war waged by US has created the situation for Iran's turmoil

By Vijay Prashad Iran is in turmoil. Across the country, there have been protests of different magnitudes, with violence on the increase with both protesters and police finding themselves in the morgue. What began as work stoppages and inflation protests drew together a range of discontent, with women and young people frustrated with a system unable to secure their livelihood. Iran has been under prolonged economic siege and has been attacked directly by Israel and the United States not only within its borders, but across West Asia (including in its diplomatic enclaves in Syria). This economic war waged by the United States has created the situation for this turmoil, but the turmoil itself is not directed at Washington but at the government in Tehran.

Uttarakhand tunnel disaster: 'Question mark' on rescue plan, appraisal, construction

By Bhim Singh Rawat* As many as 40 workers were trapped inside Barkot-Silkyara tunnel in Uttarkashi after a portion of the 4.5 km long, supposedly completed portion of the tunnel, collapsed early morning on Sunday, Nov 12, 2023. The incident has once again raised several questions over negligence in planning, appraisal and construction, absence of emergency rescue plan, violations of labour laws and environmental norms resulting in this avoidable accident.

Search This Blog