Child sex ratio at birth sees hike in Rajasthan

Child sex ratio at birth has increased to 948 girls per 1,000 boys, Rajasthan's health department said citing data retrieved with the help of pregnancy and child tracking system (PCTS).

The child sex ratio at the time of birth was 929 girls for 1,000 boys in 2015-16 and rose to 938 in 2016-17 and 944 in 2017-18, a statement issued by the state health department said.

As per the 2011 census, the sex ratio in the state was 888 girls per 1,000 boys.

Health Minister Dr Raghu Sharma said Banswara district topped with 1,003 girls per 1,000 boys in the state.

"In 2015-16, the sex ratio at birth in Banswara was 941, 964 in 2016-17 and 954 in 2017-18. In Churu, the sex ration at birth was 986 girls for 1,000 boys followed by 982 in Barmer, 977 in Hanumangarh and 974 in Jalore," he said.

The health minister also said Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act (PCPNDT), 1994, was being complied with in the state.

"Since 2009, 152 decoy operations, including 11 this year, had been carried out in a crackdown on sonography centres. In 2019 so far, 978 sonography centres had been inspected," he said.

Sharma said that 45 inter-state decoy operations were carried out from 2015-18 under the PCPNDT Act.