Mumbai: The sex ratio in Maharashtra is declining alarmingly, according to information provided by the State Health Department in the Legislative Assembly on Wednesday.
In a written reply submitted in the Assembly, Health Minister Deepak Sawant said that according to the 2017 interim report from the birth registration records, the sex ratio in the State dropped to 899 females per 1,000 males in 2016 from 960 in 2015. Dr. Sawant was replying to a question raised by leader of Opposition Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil and other MLAs.
Washim, Pune and Osmanabad have registered the maximum decrease in sex ratio of 49%, 46% and 34%, respectively, the reply said.
Responding to a question, the minister also listed the measures taken by the State government to tackle the issue. “The government has appointed 608 designated officials for effective implementation of the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act in the State,” said the reply. A squad has been formed under the chairmanship of the district collectors for the implementation. The government said that it regularly checks sonography centres and has a PCPNDT Act helpline number 18002334475 for complainants.
Replying to another query on malnourished children, the health department said that 9.4% of the total deaths in the 0-6 age group in 16 tribal districts are due to malnutrition.
According to information provided by Dr. Sawant, there were 25,289 malnourished children in 16 tribal districts in 2014-15 and 20,435 in 2015-16. The question over child malnutrition was raised by over 30 MLAs. The minister also informed the House that over 2,818 children died during April 2016 to March 2017.
