Act tough on sex determination centres, officials told DMHO

Eluru: West Godavari District Medical and Health Officer Dr Subrahmanyeswari ordered the officials to act tough against scanning centres which were entertaining sex determination tests to save discrimination of girl child and prevent female feticides.

The district-level advisory committee, on implementation of Pre-conception and Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques Act, 1994 met under DMHO's chairmanship here on Monday night.

Speaking on the occasion, the DMHO said that the permitted tests to verify the health of fetus was being misused leading to brutal killing of girls much ahead of their birth. If such things take place there would be a severe imbalance in the male-female ratio leading to gender discrimination.

She asked the officials to take stern action against the ultrasound scanning centres in the districts not implementing the Act and disclosing sex of the fetus. She directed the officials to keep a watch on the scanning centres in the mandals where female sex ratio up to age of six years is comparatively less.