People's Democracy

HARYANA

State Govt Responsible

For Declining Sex Ratio

THE Haryana state committee of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has expressed deep concern over the provisionally released census figures. Released by the Census Commissioner of India, the figures on sex ratio and population growth for 2011 paint a dismal picture of Haryana on the socio-demographic front.  

Reacting over these figures through a statement issued from Rohtak on April 2, the party’s state secretary Inderjit Singh the fact that among all the Indian states the state of Haryana has the lowest children sex ratio --- only 830 females per thousand males --- is a matter of shame when seen in the context of very loud development claims being made by the state government. It is further disheartening is that two districts of the state --- Jhajjar and Mahendergarh, with the child sex ratios of 774 and 778 respectively --- stand below all other districts in the country. These two districts were among the better performing districts in 2001 and Jhajjar district was even given state award in 2009 for increasing the female child births.

The population of the state has grown at the rate of 20 per cent over the last one decade, which is higher than the all-India average of 17.64 per cent and much higher than the neighbouring states of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh.

According to Inderjit Singh, the menace of sex detection has been rampant even in the areas which were less affected by it during the earlier decade. The party has strongly criticised the political leadership of the last three governments in the state for grossly neglecting the incidence of under-nutrition among female children and prevalence of high female infant mortality rate. Various studies have shown that poverty and under-nutrition are very closely associated, and these both have increased in Haryana.

The social-demographic data of Census 2011 clearly expose the hollowness of the government schemes and claims that the state is number one in the country in the matter of inclusive and holistic development. Singh has asked the Haryana state government to refrain from empty slogan-mongering and take effective measures, starting with an honest self-criticism for its failures rather than indulging in self-glorification over the pseudo-development.

The CPI(M) state committee has also taken note of the commendable social indicators as revealed by the census figures for the Left ruled states of West Bengal, Kerala and Tripura. These figures have amply disproved the false propaganda about these states, frequently appearing in some sections of the corporate media.