Ganjam clinics warned not to conduct sex determination tests

Ultrasound clinics in Ganjam district, which has a skewed sex ratio, have been warned of stringent action if they were found to violate the regulations under the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PC&PNDT) Act.
The owners of the ultrasound clinics should follow the regulations of the act while operating the device, Ganjam district Collector, P C Choudhory, said.
He was addressing ultrasound clinic owners at a sensitisation meeting organised yesterday by health and family welfare department.
While the district has 36 registered ultrasound units, at least six of them have been sealed by the district administration following violation of the regulations, Chief District Medical Officer (CDMO), Mrutunjay Mishra, said.

The speakers said strict implementation of PC&PNDT Act was necessary to prevent misuse of ultrasound machines for sex determination test.
The sex ratio in Ganjam district was 908 girls per 1,000 boys according to the last census in 2011. It was lower than the state average of 941 girls per 1,000 boys, the official sources said.
Female foeticide after sex determination test might be the cause of the skewed sex ratio in the district, Mishra said.
There was an urgent need to curb such illegal practice to improve the sex ratio in the district, he said.