Haryana Suspends 4 Doctors Over Poor Monitoring of Sex Ratio Measures

"The government has also initiated disciplinary proceedings against the officers under Rule 7 of the Haryana Civil Services (Punishment and Appeal) Rules, 2016, against these officers for poor performance and failure to ensure effective monitoring and implementation of measures relating to improvement of sex ratio", the order reads.

The sex ratio at birth (SRB) for the first four months of the current year dropped to 898 girls per 1,000 boys in Haryana.

However, last year, this figure for the entire year stood at 923, the highest recorded in the state.

In the first four months of the current year, some districts, including Sonipat, Rohtak and Yamunanagar, recorded sex ratio at birth below the 900 mark.The Haryana government on Monday suspended three senior medical officers and a medical officer over alleged poor performance and failure to effectively monitor and implement measures aimed at improving the sex ratio in the state.

The suspension orders were issued by Additional Chief Secretary (Health) Sumita Misra.

According to the order, those suspended with immediate effect are Dr Tina Anand, senior medical officer (SMO) posted at Community Health Centre (CHC) Purkhas in Sonipat, Dr Vijay Parmar, SMO at CHC Radaur in Yamunanagar, Dr Satpal, SMO at CHC Chiri in Rohtak, and Dr Prabha, Medical Officer at CHC Sehlang in Narnaul.

During the suspension period, the four officers will remain attached to the offices of Civil Surgeons in Rohtak, Ambala, Jhajjar and Rewari, according to the order.

"The government has also initiated disciplinary proceedings against the officers under Rule 7 of the Haryana Civil Services (Punishment and Appeal) Rules, 2016, against these officers for poor performance and failure to ensure effective monitoring and implementation of measures relating to improvement of sex ratio", the order reads.

The sex ratio at birth (SRB) for the first four months of the current year dropped to 898 girls per 1,000 boys in Haryana.

However, last year, this figure for the entire year stood at 923, the highest recorded in the state.

In the first four months of the current year, some districts, including Sonipat, Rohtak and Yamunanagar, recorded sex ratio at birth below the 900 mark.

However, among the best-performing districts included Karnal, which recorded sex ratio at birth of 968 and Faridabad 932.

The Haryana government has recently intensified its statewide campaign to improve the sex ratio and curb illegal sex determination practices.

Misra had directed district health authorities to launch stricter enforcement and awareness measures across all districts.

Last week, she issued comprehensive directions to Civil Surgeons in the state and said that the Health Department is committed to ensuring effective implementation of the PC&PNDT Act and the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act to eliminate female foeticide and promote gender equality.

She directed all districts to significantly increase raids and inspections against illegal sex determination activities and strengthen surveillance mechanisms to identify and curb violations at the ground level.

The officer had emphasised that strict monitoring and swift action are essential to improving the sex ratio in the state.