The Emerging Pattern of Child Sex Relations in India– Essay
Declining number of girls vis-a-vis boys the child sex ratio (CSR) had primarily caught the attention across the country during the last two decades, particularly since 1991 census that has published the population under 7 for the first time.
Ironically it was to bring the literacy counts at par with the international practices. However, the data showed that at the national level there were 945 girls to 1000 boys, five points short of generally accepted child sex ratio of 950 girls per 1000 boys.
The 2001 census not only saw a sharp decline of 18 points at the national level with child sex ratio of 927, some pockets of the country particularly, the north-west had recoded CSR of 850 and below with some of the prosperous states such as Punjab (-77), Haryaana (-60), and Gujarat (-45) occupying the top positions in terms of declining number of girls over the decade. The urbanised Delhi (-47) and Chandigarh (-54) were no better.
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Although the number of girls continues to decline, the 2011 Census shows a somewhat slowing of the process- the decline now is by 13 points. Moreover, the worst affected states in 2011 Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab along with Delhi and Chandigarh have improved their CSR in 2011.
That sai, not only a majority of districts in Haryana and Punjab continue to remain in the dubious category of CSR of 850 and below, the most urbanised districts of Faribadand Gurgaon in Haryana join the rank More importantly, several districts in Andhra Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh are now showing worsening CSRs.
In a nutshell, while the old pattern of dismal CSR is almost stagnant or show some reversal in the CSRs over the decades, there are newer areas where CSRs are falling with alarming alacrity. It is no longer specific communities or regions that are characterised by low CSRs.
