MORE FEMALE INFANTICIDES/ FOETICIDES THAN EVER

With improving levels of education and awareness, one would assume that social evils like female infanticide and female foeticide will be washed off our society. With a number of women campaigns and laws favoring women, a girl child should not be threatened anymore. However, statistics speak otherwise.

According to Census 2011, the number of girls per 1000 boys between age is 914. In 2001, the number was 927 girls for 1000 boys and in 1991, there were 945 girls per 1000 boys. The sharp decline in the number of girls can be attributed to several gender and stereotypical roles assigned by the society.

Some of the beliefs that favor a boy child:

- A boy carries on the family name.

- A boy will marry and bring additional help to the household (the wife).

- A boy will bring dowry to the house and help economically, whereas a family will have to pay dowry for a girl.

- Many religious practices like burning a funeral pyre should be performed by the son.

These beliefs are the main reason behind dismal sex ratio and gender inequality in our society. Millions of girls are killed because the society prefers a boy child over a girl child. In spite of laws that favor women in our country, there has been no change in the condition of women. Education an modernisation has only changed the form of subjugation of women.

To overcome this situation, we have to change as a society, and as individual members of the society, we have to start respecting women, we need to create equal space for women in the society so that no family feels ashamed or burdened at the birth of a girl child, so that there are no evils in the society targeting women.