Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore (SP)
Mangalore, Jun 3: State legal advisor Rajeshwari Devi has advised Dakshina Kannada district health and family welfare officer, to issue notices to radiologists and heads of departments of most of the private institutions who chose to stay away from a consultative meeting recently convened in the city regarding the misuse of the pre-natal sex-determination techniques of the foetus.
Speaking at a press conference here on Tuesday June 2, Rajeshwari said, she is disappointed with the disheartening response for the programme in a district which is educationally in the forefront. "I am highly disappointed," she added.
"There are 127 institutions in the district which have been registered under the Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse Act - 1994), those which have ultra-sound equipments installed with them. We have personally inspected some such institutions. In four centres, some defects had been observed and they have been given some time to set right the anomalies," she described.
The survey indicates that the number of girl children as against the male in the up to 6six years age group, is coming down, which is an alarming trend. The 2001 census reveals that the district has only 952 girl children to 1,000 male children under this category, which is appalling, she pointed out.
District health and family welfare officer Dr H Jagannath and gynaecologist Dr Rathi Devi were present.