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SC Strengthens Law Banning Sex Determination, Says Female Foeticide 'Corrodes Human Values'

Decreasing sex ration is a "colossal calamity", said the Supreme Court.
Schoolgirls pose with placards during a protest march against female foeticide.
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Schoolgirls pose with placards during a protest march against female foeticide.

The Supreme Court of India, expressing concern over the worsening sex ratio in the country, has said that any discrimination against women was "constitutionally impermissible" and need to be promptly buried.

The apex court, hearing a public interest litigation, also passed a slew of measures to curb female foeticide, a practice rampant in India, despite a law that bans it.

The Hindustan Times reports that the Supreme Court directed high courts to fast-track cases related to pre-natal diagnostics, asked states and union territories to maintain a centralised database of all registration units containing birth information of each district, municipality or gram panchayat.

The bench headed by Justice Dipak Misra also said that the such information needed to be displayed on websites.

The Economic Times quoted the Supreme Court as saying, "Decrease in the sex ratio is a sign of colossal calamity and it cannot be allowed to happen."

The bench also said that when a female foetus is destroyed through artificial means, "the dignity of life of a woman to be born is extinguished. It corrodes the human values."

The court also directed the government to create awareness about the evils of this practice through campaigns on television and radio, reported The Hindustan Times.

The current sex ration in India is 944 females to every 1000 male. According to the 2011 census, Haryana had the lowest sex ratio (876), while Kerala had the highest (1084).

Business Standard reported the court also said that statutory authorities should meet regularly so that the law was stringently implemented and "the effectiveness of the legislation is felt and realised in the society".

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.