‘Save girl child’– a topic that is talked about almost everywhere, but are we doing enough for it? 

The present scenario :

The 2001 Census conducted by Government of India, showed a sharp decline in the child sex ratio in 80% districts of India.

India, in all its glory of being an IT superpower and one of the fastest developing countries, tragically represents the lowest child sex ratio in the world.

India represents one of the most adverse Child Sex Ratio figures amongst the Southeast Asian countries, which is alarming.

The most affected areas are affluent states of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. Ironically, our national capital, New Delhi, has the worst sex ratio i.e., 866.

Female Foeticide - A social evil

Female foeticide is both a national problem and a social evil. It’s unbelievable that the urge for a boy-child makes them so cruel that they dare to kill the child that is yet to be born.

Causes of female foeticide

The different possible causes for the problem of female foeticide are:

1. Low position of women: On one hand we worship goddesses with full respect while on the other hand women are subjected to injustices. People feel that the birth of girl child may lower their status in the society. Thus, people leave no stone unturned to get a boy-child.

2. Extreme poverty: People who live in extremely poor conditions often think that the girl child would cause more economic hardship to them as they are not considered as the earning members of the family.

3. Illiteracy: Illiterate people are unaware of the crime they are committing and what harm can it have on the society. They do not use their own wisdom and blindly follow what has been going on since ages.

4. Dowry system: The social evil of dowry system worsens the situation as one may not be able to fulfill the demands of the boy's family.

• It has been observed that even the affluent people in India prefer a boy-child to a girl-child. I think that the economic causes are not a proper excuse for this crime. 

• The main reason is that they have a lot of property and they want a heir for themselves. It is believed that the boys should be given the responsibility to take care of the wealth and property that has been passed down in the family since ages. 

• Moreover, they are the first ones to have access to new techniques like ultrasound and other medical facilities.

How can we save the girl child?

1. Women empowerment: The women need to be empowered. She needs to fight for her right of giving birth to a baby be it a boy or a girl.

2. Spreading awareness: Every citizen of the country should be made aware of the fact that a girl child is as important as a boy child. They should come to know that if proper facilities are provided to a girl (i.e., proper living conditions, education, health, etc.) she can help her family economically.

3. Education: Education raises the knowledge regarding various social issues of a person. Thus, more and more people will understand the value of girls and it would lead to a decrease in female foeticide.

4. Government initiatives: Our government is taking various initiatives to keep a check on illegal practices and support the birth and raising up of a girl-child but, more efforts are required to stop the practice of female foeticide.

Is enough being done for the girls?

Initiatives taken by the government :-

• Narendra modi, our honorable prime minister, launched a scheme 'Beti bachao, beti padhao'  in more than 100 districts across the country.
• He also launched 'Sukanya Samriddhi Account' so that the parents of a girl do not face problems while meeting the expenses for their child's education and marriage. 
• The Hindu Succession Act gives daughters an equal right to their ancestral property.
• The Department of Post has been contributing significantly in spreading awareness regarding save girl child by issuing stamps and post cards.

These are the various postcards and covers issued by the
 postal department of  India.

Thinking a world without girls.......

The main question that arises is - "Can we think a world without girls?"

The answer is simple: NO.
But still we are not paying any heed to the decrease in the number of girls and people are still longing for a baby boy.
Every man wants a wife but no father wants a daughter to be born in his house. It is estimated that if the sex ratio continues to fall at the same rate, by 2030 tens of millions of Indian men will not be able to marry or have children. What will India full of unmarried, angry, frustrated men be like? Crime will increase, drug use, trafficking, and prostitution may also increase.
And one day there would be no women left and that day the countdown of the end of human race will begin.......

We want our country to become a developed nation and so the first step would be to change our mindset regarding the girls. We should accept the fact that boys and girls are equally important. We should feel happy when a girl is born the same as we feel in the case of the birth of a boy.
Thus, at the end, I would say that a girl is one of the best creations of God and she should not be killed. She has a right to live her life to the fullest.