Rise in India's female feticide may spark crisis

By Nita Bhalla

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Increasing female feticide in India could spark a demographic crisis where fewer women in society will result in a rise in sexual violence and child abuse as well as wife-sharing, the United Nations warned.

Despite laws banning tests to determine the sex of an unborn child, the killing of female fetuses is common in some regions of India where a preference for sons runs deep.

As a result, the United Nations says an estimated 2,000 unborn girls are illegally aborted every day in India.

This has led to skewed sex ratios in regions like Punjab, Haryana, Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh as well as the capital, New Delhi, where a census in 2001 showed there are less than 800 girls for every 1,000 boys.

"The 2001 census was a wake-up call for all of us and much public awareness have been created on female feticide since then," Ena Singh, assistant representative for the United Nations Population Fund in India told Reuters.

"But initial figures show sex ratios are still declining as female feticide is becoming more widespread across the country and it is likely to be worse in the next census in 2011."

In most parts of India, sons are viewed as breadwinners who will look after their parents and carry on the family name, but daughters are viewed as financial liabilities for whom they will have to pay substantial dowries to get married off.

DEMOGRAPHIC CRISIS?