Ten years after the Supreme Court commissioned a team under the Central Government to swoop down on nursing homes and private clinics conducting illegal sex determination tests, questions have been raised on its efficacy as a member of the team has informed the Court that inspections are sporadic and States refused to act against erring institutions and its owners.
Under the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act 1994, sex selection and sex determination is a punishable offence and any person indulging in it risks imprisonment of a maximum term upto three years along with fine. In 2003, with a view to arrest the sharp decline in sex ration across the country, the apex court had directed the National Inspection and Monitoring Committee (NIMC), constituted by Centre to ensure implementation of the Act, to conduct nation-wide inspections to report on violations under the Act.
An application by one of the NIMC members Sabu Mathew George informed the Court that over the years, there was a lack of zeal on part of the Centre and the States to comply with the 2003 order. It stated that the inspections lacked consistency and in cases where efforts were made to report violations, States refused to act. There were certain instances of collusion between clinic owners and State officials as the NIMC team found the clinic locked since advance notice of surprise checks had to be given to the State.
The application also informed the Court that action against erring clinics and medical practitioners failed to yield desired results as States ignored NIMC's recommendation and even permitted the erring clinics to reopen within a matter of days or weeks after being booked for serious violation of the Act. Concerned over the turn of events, the apex bench headed by Justice KS Radhakrishnan, has asked States to respond within a month on action taken against violators. The bench warned that in the event if any State failed to appear on next date, the concerned Chief Secretary would be summoned to Court.
The Court also wished to know from the Centre on the feasibility of electronically updating all registered births in the State on the State’s website. Taking a cue from Kerala Government’s ‘Sevana’ website which is the first such successful venture to record every single registered birth, the NIMC member George had requested the Court to consider replicating it in other States as well.
The bench asked Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Rakesh Khanna to take a look on the proposal and identify its feasibility on a national level. Presently, sex ratio is known by means of Census figures, recorded once in 10 years. A recent survey suggests that as of 2009, five million births remain unregistered.