Male-skewed Sex Ratio of the Last Child (SRLC) is affecting the health and well-being of women in India. Discuss (200 words)
Refer – The Indian Express
Enrich the answer from other sources, if the question demands.
IAS Parliament 6 years
KEY POINTS
Son Meta preference
· Parents may choose to keep having children until they get the desired number of sons. This is called son “meta” preference.
· Despite multiple social media campaigns and government-sponsored awareness programmes to promote gender equality, the preference for sons continues to be strong among Indian parents.
Sex Ratio of the Last Child (SRLC)
· It is an indicator that potentially helps to detect the existence of “meta” preference for a son in a society.
· According to Economic Survey 2018, the aggregate data of all families in India when collated clearly captures that the SRLC is male-skewed.
· This “boy oriented reproduction” does reduce the overall sex ratio as it contributes more girls (although unwanted).
Impact of Son Meta preference on women
· Unwanted girls – These are daughters that parents gave birth to when they were really hoping for a son, and were disappointed and dejected hence.
· Even though such preference does not lead to sex-selective abortion, it may nevertheless be detrimental to female children because it may lead to fewer resources devoted to them.
· Girls get fewer resources in comparison to boys in general and moreover, parents who passionately want sons, unsurprisingly, favour them once born.
· They will not receive the deserving healthcare and schooling, due to the gender related partiality.
· Here, even if parents treat all their children equally, girls are disadvantaged by being in families with fewer resources to spend per child.
· Boys have been found to get better immunisation and nutrition, which is also reflected in India’s stunting data that displays a visible gender gap.
Way forward
· Improve earnings opportunities for women, as this would lower dowry and increase their say in family decision-making.
· Better options for people to support themselves in old age, such as a good pension system, would also make having a son less paramount to couples.
· Other generic and cultural aspects that reinforcing patriarchy also need to be targeted to achieve a gender neutral society.
