Supreme Court slams govt for lax implementation of a law banning sex determination tests that fuel the scourge
By Nita Bhalla
NEW DELHI, March 5 (TrustLaw) - India's Supreme Court has issued fresh guidelines to fight female foeticide and slamming the government for lax implementation of a law banning sex determination tests that fuel the scourge, the Indian Express said on Tuesday.
Lamenting that the business of pre-natal sex determination was widely prevalent, the court directed federal and state authorities to map all registered and unregistered clinics offering ultrasound services within three months.
"It would not be an exaggeration to say a society that does not respect its woman can't be treated to be civilised," the report quoted judges K.S. Radhakrishnan and Dipak Misra as saying.
"Female foeticide has its roots in the social thinking which is fundamentally based on certain erroneous notions, ego-centric traditions, pervert perception of societal norms, and obsession with ideas which are totally individualistic sans the collective good."
The Supreme Court also asked the central and state governments to file a status report on action taken within three months.
Among the other steps sought by the court were more aggressive monitoring of the clinics, prompt seizure of equipment and records of offending doctors and cancellation of their licences.
In parts of largely patriarchal India, there is a strong preference for male children.
Sons are traditionally viewed as the main breadwinners who will take care of the family, continue the family name, and perform the last rites of the parents - an important ritual in many faiths.
According to India's 2011 census, there are only 940 women to every 1,000 men, suggesting that the illegal practice of female foeticide - the killing of unborn girls - continues unabated.
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