By IANS,
Lucknow : The Uttar Pradesh government will constitute a vigilance and monitoring cell to check the mushrooming of illegal ultrasound and diagnostic centres undertaking the banned sex determination tests in the state, a senior official said Tuesday.
“The cell will ensure better enforcement of the Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (PNDT) Act, which bans sex determination tests,” Director General (Medical and Health) I.S. Srivastava told IANS.
Uttar Pradesh has over 3,500 ultrasound centres against the approved strength of 600, according to a study by the Indian Radiological and Imaging Association (IRIA).
The cell, which will be constituted by November, will be run by the cooperation of government officials, social activists and non-government organisations, officials said.
The unauthorised diagnostic centres that indulge in the offence of sex determination are one of the main reasons behind the increasing incidence of female foeticide in the state, the official added.
The average sex ratio of the state is 898 females per 1,000 males. The ratio in several districts including Hardoi, Shahjahanpur, Badaun and Etah even less.
In these districts there are less than 850 females per 1,000 males, officials said.