PRENATAL SEX DETERMINATION: Issues and Concern

A vast amount of knowledge and voluminous literature is available on sex discrimination in India over the last twenty years. Moreover, detailed statistics about sex ratio from various sources exist.Understanding the rationale behind prenatal sex determination is no doubt key to deciphering the dynamics of sex ratio in India. Present article is an attempt to review the main dimensions of the recentsex-ratio degradation in India: its origin, its mechanisms and social characteristics, its implications in the long run and its major causes. Analysis also points to the positive linkage between abnormal sex ratio and better socio-economic status and literacy. Child Sex ratio is not lowest in poor tribal districts or other backward areas, but in prosperous Western Maharashtra and other economically empowered districts. It is essential to raise awareness and seek attitudinal and behavior changes to tackle the problem.