In a bid to tighten grip on sex determination tests, the Haryana Government on Tuesd-ay decided to increase the incentive by 150 per cent to informers of sex determination tests.
All informants would now get Rs 50,000 from the earlier sum of Rs 20,000, Health Minister Rao Narender Singh said. The reward is given to informers for enforcement of the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act.
“Consistent efforts made by the department have resulted in the sex ratio improving to 878 in May 2014, up seven points over the corresponding period last year. Today, the sex ratio is more than 900 girls to 1,000 boys in six districts of the State. It ranges between 800 and 900 in the remaining districts. Mahender-garh is the only district where the sex ratio is below 800,” a health department spokesman said.
The Minister directed officers to analyse statistics of the past 10 years to figure out the reasons behind low sex ratio in the districts. Haryana’s sex ratio statistics are among the worst in the country.
“There has been considerable improvement in bringing to book the accused under the PCPNDT Act during the last year. So far, 54 people have been convicted in 97 cases in lower courts and 49 cases in upper courts. Of these, 33 were doctors. Similarly, during the past six years, eight accused have been convicted, including five doctors,” the spokesman said.
Additional Chief Secretary, Health Department, Navraj Sandhu said that to deal with the clinics indulging in the illegal practices of sex determination, the frequency of raids has been increased with the help of district administration. Special focus has been laid on Narnaul and Rewari.