India’s sex ratio at birth normalizes slightly

GS Paper 2

Syllabus: Issues related to the development and management of the social sector relating to health, social sector schemes etc

Source: The Hindu

Directions: Remember the trend and some unique findings of the report.

Context: The latest study by Pew Research Center has pointed out that “son bias” is on a decline in India and the average annual number of “baby girls missing” in India fell from approx. 4.8 lakh in 2010 to 4.1 lakh in 2019.

• • • Missing females: It refers to how many births would have occurred during the time if there were no female selective abortions.

Key Highlights of the report:

• • • Sex ratio normalised slightly: From about 111 boys per 100 girls (India’s 2011 census) to about 109 (2015-16) and to 108 boys (latest NFHS survey 2019-21)
    • Missing females: The Pew Research Center report points out that between 2000-2019, nine crore female births went “missing” because of female-selective abortions.

Sex selection among Sikhs:

• • • Highest among Sikhs: Sex selection was the highest for Sikhs.
    • Missing girls among Sikhs: The study points out that while the Sikhs make up less than 2% of the Indian population, they accounted for an estimated 5% of the nine crore baby girls who went “missing” in India between 2000 and 2019.

Sex Selection among Hindus:

• • • Missing girls among Hindus: The share of “missing” girls among Hindus is also above their respective population share.
      • Hindus make up 80% of India’s population but accounted for an estimated 87% or approximately eight crores of the females “missing” due to sex-selective abortions.

Sex Selection among Muslims and Christians:

• • • Normal: Both Christians (105 boys to 100 girls) and Muslims (106 boys to 100 girls) have sex ratios close to the natural norm, and this trend is holding.
    • Missing females: The share of female births “missing” among Muslims and Christians during this period is lower than each group’s share of the Indian population.
      • Among Muslims: Muslims, who make up about 14% of India’s population, accounted for 7%, or approximately 5.9 lakh, of the country’s “missing” girls.
      • Among Christians: Christians, who make up 2.3% of the population, have had an estimated 0.6%, or about 0.5 lakh, of the total number of sex-selective abortions.

Sex ratio at birth:

• • • It is the number of females born per thousand males.
    • It is an important indicator to map the gender gap in a population.
    • The sex ratio report in India is published by the Registrar General of India.

Insta Links:

Sex ratio in India

Mains links:

Q. What are the continued challenges for women in India against time and space? (UPSC 2019)

Prelims links:

• • • Sex ratio
    • Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act, 1994
    • Missing girls