Jammu, May 22 – A two-day workshop to sensitize various stakeholders engaged in effective implementation of the Prenatal Diagnostic Technique (PNDT) Act for sex determination of foetus organized at Government Medical College concluded in Jammu on Friday evening.
Principal, Government Medical College, Dr. Rajinder Singh inaugurated the workshop in which senior officers of Health department, Rural Health Mission and Family Welfare participated.
The workshop was organized in collaboration with Health Mission, Directorate of Family Welfare & RCH to provide information regarding adverse child sex ratio and effective use of PNDT Act to check use of prenatal diagnostic technique for sex selective abortions.
Dr. Sabu George, Consultant on female foeticide from Delhi delivered lecture on PNDT Act and deliberated on the issues of medical ethics, basic concepts and introduction to sex selection .He called for strict adherence to Act by medical fraternity so that a check can be made on the decreasing girl child ratio in the society.
"As per the sample registration system data done at the level of hospitals, 7800 girls are being killed before birth every year in Jammu region which means 680 female foeticide incidents are taking place every month", he said, adding "in Jammu district alone, 2800 girls are being eliminated in the womb of mothers every year. Such incidents are more in Sunderbani and Hiranagar where girl child ratio has declined to 765 and 743 girls per 1000 boys".
Dr Sebu said,”this illegal practice has become Rs 5 crore per annum business in this part of the State.
Expressing concern over non-seriousness in implementing Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act, 1994 in Jammu and Kashmir, he said "if we fail to act, this genocide would assume alarming proportion because of medical terrorism", adding "society, medical fraternity, media persons and politicians have a greater role to play in checking decreasing girl child ratio in the society".
Dr Jatinder Singh from Medicine Department said that every section of the society has to play collective role in checking female foeticide which is a punishable crime.Dr Ghansham Deo, Head of Department of Radio Diagnosis, Dr Arshad Bhat, Registrar Radio Diagnosis Department and senior officers of Health Department, Rural Health Mission and Directorate of Family Welfare and RCH also spoke on the occasion.
A media sensitization programme was also organized in which media personnel participated and deliberated about various aspects of PNDT Act and its implementation in Jammu and Kashmir.
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