‘Health ministry to expand female foeticide project in Haryana’

NEW DELHI - To counter the low sex ratio in Haryana, the union health ministry has decided to expand the scope of social group Centre for Social Researchs (CSR) project on female foeticide, a project official said Thursday.

The ministry has decided to take the project “Meri Shakti Meri Beti” further in two Haryana districts with 20 more villages and 10 more blocks, said Manasi Mishra, head of research department at the CSR, who conducts workshops in the region.

We are prepared to take the programme further. The challenge is in generating awareness on the issue as there is denial over sex-ratio imbalance among the community members, she said.

People in these districts accepted the fact that brides had to be brought from other areas due to a fall in sex ratio, added Mishra.

According to the 2001 census, Ambala district in Haryana accounted for 784 girls per 1,000 boys, while Kurukshetra district had 770 girls per 1,000 boys.

The programme is a partnership between the CSR and women’s group Women Power Connect in Kurukshetra and Ambala.