States yet to fully enact 1994 Act banning foetus sex determination

The ministry of health and family welfare said that 12 states are carrying out a decoy programme to find out malpractices

Years after its passage, states are yet to fully implement the Pre-conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act 1994, the government told the Standing Committee on Women Empowerment. In reply to some of the recommendations of the Committee on some aspects of the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao scheme, the ministry of health and family welfare said that only 12 states are carrying out a decoy programme to find out malpractices which was designed for better implementation of the Act.

The ministry was replying to the Committee’s recommendations of the Fifth Report (Seventeenth Lok Sabha) on ‘Empowerment of Women Through Education with Special Reference To Beti Bachao – Beti Padhao Scheme’. In the action taken report, replying to recommendations for better implementation of the PCPNDT Act, the health ministry said that all states were directed to carry out decoy programmes and informer schemes, and that the Centre was also financing this initiative.

Only Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Chandigarh and Delhi are now implementing them, the ministry said. In addition to that, Bihar, Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Odisha and Jharkhand are in process of implementing it.

The health ministry further said that it sent the recommendation of the Committee to the rest of the states asking them to start these initiatives as soon as possible. It also requested the Ministry of Law and Justice to issue directions to all concern courts for the fast tracking of the pending cases under PCPNDT Act.

In Rajasthan, special PNDT courts have been designated in each district since 2015, and in Maharashtra, a three-member committee of High Court judges have been constituted to review pending PNDT cases. In Odisha, too, the Chief Justice has constituted a committee of three judges to periodically oversee the progress of the cases.

The Committee, in its report, had said that there was inadequate monitoring of implementation of the Act by the National Inspection and Monitoring Committee, and suggested that all ultrasound machines be registered since there were several cases of clinics and practitioners conducting ultrasound tests to determine and disclose the sex of the foetus. The Committee had also said that many states are yet to develop online mechanisms for registrations and to record maintenance under the Act to ensure accountability and transparency.

In the last 25 years, there are only 617 convictions in 3158 court cases registered under the Act. “However, the Committee observe that despite the introduction of PC&PNDT Act, overall Sex ratio in the country has not improved remarkably,” the Committee had noted.

In reply to the Committee’s concerns on sex ratio, the ministry of women and child development said that NGOs, civil society organisations and women’s groups have been carrying out awareness programmes on the Act. The Committee has now asked the WCD ministry to furnish details of awareness campaigns carried out by states, UTs and NGOs in the last three years, along with the number of women who have participated in them.

The Act was amended in 2003 to make it more stringent and comprehensive, and in 2020, ultrasound equipment was notified as a drug under the Drugs and Cosmetic Act 1945 making it mandatory to procure a license from the Drug Controller of India for purchasing, importing of ultrasound machines.