Haryana sets up ‘state task force’ to improve sex ratio, announces stringent measures
The government has also decided to appoint five women sarpanches, preferably with all-girl children, as brand ambassadors for “Beti Bachao Beti Padhao” to drive community engagement in the campaign
In a bid to further tighten noose on those surreptitiously involved in gender determination and female foeticide, Haryana’s health department on Tuesday set up a 12- member “State Task Force” to intensify surveillance and enforcement under the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PC-PNDT) Act.
The government has also decided to appoint five women sarpanches, preferably with all-girl children, as brand ambassadors for “Beti Bachao Beti Padhao” to drive community engagement in the campaign. This renewed push comes as Haryana continues to battle a low sex ratio at birth, with authorities vowing stricter enforcement and increased public awareness to address the issue.
As Haryana’s skewed sex ratio remains a cause for concern, the raft of measures taken on Tuesday signal a renewed crackdown on illegal practices and an emphasis on grassroots engagement.
“I chaired yet another meeting on Tuesday to address the issue of sex ratio...The raids will continue to curb the practice of sex determination. And we shall come down heavily on those selling Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) kits illegally,” additional chief secretary (health and family welfare) Sudhir Rajpal told Hindustan Times.
The task force will meet every Tuesday and the panel will comprise mission director (MD) National Health Mission (NHM) Haryana; director general health services (DGHS); DG (AYUSH); state drug controller; director (PNDT), while Dr Virender Yadav (director-NHM) will be convener of this body. The panel will also include senior officials from women and child development (WCD) along with legal representatives.
Monthly sex ratio report from CHC’s to be submitted to ACS
Sources say it was also decided that a monthly sex ratio report from each community health centre (CHC) will be compiled and submitted to the ACS (health). To curb illegal medical terminations of pregnancies, five raids per week per district will be conducted to crack down on the unlawful sale of MTP kits.
The sale of these kits will now be restricted to registered MTP centres and district health officials have been tasked with monitoring compliance.
Informers aiding in such raids will receive an incentive of ₹10,000, while decoy customers assisting in uncovering illegal sales will be rewarded with ₹25,000 from Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) funds.
“Weekly reports under PNDT Act and illegal sale of MTP kits will be taken from districts. The DGHS has been directed to give the targets to the districts for the raids while law officer (PNDT) will prepare format for MTP kits sale report,” said an official privy to the decisions taken in the meeting.
The civil surgeon (Panchkula) was directed to prepare the reporting format of the MTP reports received from the districts. The officials were directed to track any Ayurvedic practitioner (BAMS) involved in conducting illegal MTPs, with the AYUSH department being roped in for enforcement.
To further combat the illegal sale of MTP kits, Rajpal directed officials to report on the progress of the online and offline sale of MTP kits to the CMOs across the state. He also said that it should be ensured that MTP kits should only be placed at registered locations.
To promote the value of the girl child, the women and child development department will launch a campaign from April 4, featuring awareness vans and cinema screenings of educational films across Haryana. The traditional “Kuan Pujan” ceremony—celebrated upon the birth of a girl—will be encouraged, along with a monetary incentive for families participating in the event.
Reproductive Child Health ID system to be rolled out across state
To ensure better tracking of pregnancies and curb sex-selective abortions, the Reproductive Child Health (RCH) ID system—already piloted in Panchkula—will be rolled out across the state. Pregnant women will receive an incentive of ₹100 for registering under this system.
The ACS (Health) also directed that every pregnancy must be registered during the first few months of pregnancy on the RCH portal and if registration is not completed, it should only be allowed with special permission from the chief medical officer (CMO) of the concerned district.
“Action will be taken for any negligence in non-registration of pregnancies,” ACS (health) has directed.
Additionally, a helpline (104) under NHM Haryana will track pregnant women with only girl children, providing counselling to discourage sex detection and female foeticide.
“The officers present in the meeting stressed that the strict enforcement of the PNDT Act, combined with incentives and awareness campaigns, will be crucial in changing societal attitudes toward the girl child,” said an official adding that multi-departmental approach will be at the root of dealing with the challenge of improving the sex ratio of Haryana.