Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Apr 14: As there has been sharp decline in the child sex ratio in the State due to female foeticide prompting the State Health Ministry to declare 2013 as “Save the Girl Child Year”, the Committee on Subordinate Legislation of the Legislative Assembly has made slew of recommendations which include issuance of electronic card to every pregnant woman to restrict the termination of pregnancy at any stage.
“There is sharp decline in the child sex ratio from 941 in 2001 to 859 as per the 2011 census”, the Committee said in its report while describing the figures as very disturbing and alarming, adding “the Jammu and Kashmir Preconception and Prenatal Sex Selection/Determination (Prohibition and Regulation) Rules, 2006 don’t seem to have been implemented strictly on ground as the menace of female foeticide had not been checked as effectively as it could have been to save the girl child.
According to the figures furnished by the Health Department to the Committee, about 67 illegal clinics in Kashmir valley and 22 in Jammu have so far been closed down by the department besides lodging an FIR against 5 such centers in Shopian district.
During the course of exercise conducted by the Committee, the Department suggested that the concerned Chief Medical Officers (CMOs) should be empowered to take suo-moto action against the violators and also the Advisory Committee headed by the Deputy Commissioner should take meeting after every three months to take stock of the situation on ground.
“The law enforcement being an important pre-requisite, a representative from the Police (SSP) should also be the member of the Advisory Committee”, the Committee on Subordinate Legislation headed by Prof Chaman Lal Gupta said, adding “the religious preachers/social organizations should also be got involved in these Advisory Committees”.
Besides suggesting holding of awareness camps to educate the masses about the importance of girl child in maintaining the healthy gender balance in the society, the Committee has stressed that moral education should be taught as a compulsory subject in all the schools from the primary level in order to inculcate moral and ethical values in the minds of students from their tender age.
The Committee also observed that no incentive was being provided on the analogy of Haryana and Maharashtra States, where the menace of foeticide had been contained to maximum, to the people for saving the girl child. “Electronic cards/track IDs be given to every pregnant woman so that the track record be maintained from conception up to delivery to restrict the termination of pregnancy at any stage”, the Committee has recommended and stressed that Rules for Nursing Council Act be framed forthwith to ensure the applicability of the Act.
The Committee has suggested amendment in the J&K Preconception and Prenatal Sex Selection/Determination (Prohibition and Regulation), Rules 2006 so that a Sonologist/Imaging Specialists/Radiologists/ Medical Practitioner should be asked to give an affidavit to the effect that they will not work at more than two centres. It has also recommended that Form-F should be filled up the Gynaecologist as was being filled-up by the Radiologist.
It has recommended ban on use of mobile ultrasound machines/on call portable ultrasound machines as the use of these has proved to be a major cause of female foeticide. “The detection of sex by any means should be prohibited and the clinics which conduct any such tests should be ceased”, the Committee said, adding “there should be professional medical ethics code prescribing punitive action for violation of the code”.
It is pertinent to mention here that Legislature being the highest law making institution makes laws and has the authority to examine the rules being made by the various departments through the Committee on Subordinate Legislation. The mandate of the Committee is to ascertain whether the powers to make regulations, rules, sub-rules and bye-laws conferred by the Constitution or delegated by the Parliament or State Legislature are being properly exercised by the executive within the ambit of such delegation.
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