SC judge Nagarathna expresses concern over worsening sex ratios in some states

New Delhi, Oct 11 (PTI) Supreme Court judge BV Nagarathna on Saturday expressed concern about the deteriorating sex ratios due to potential female infanticide and foeticide in certain states, stating that girls should not merely survive but thrive.

She was speaking at the national annual stakeholders consultation on "Safeguarding the Girl Child: Towards a Safer and Enabling Environment for Her in India," organised by the Juvenile Justice Committee of the Supreme Court in collaboration with UNICEF India.

Justice Nagarathna was speaking in the presence of Chief Justice of India BR Gavai and Annapurna Devi, Union Minister for Women and Child Development. Justice JB Pardiwala, member of the JJC and other apex court judges were also present on the occasion.

She asserted that a young girl in India can only be considered a truly equal citizen when she can freely aspire to achieve anything her male counterpart can and receive the same quality of support and resources without facing gender-specific barriers.

"Put differently, the odds of her being born at all, having access to the right nutrition, care, education and material resources, a secure and safe environment, developing a distinct sense of self and being able to achieve whatever she sets her mind to have to be equivalent to that of a boy child born in this country. She should not merely survive but actively thrive," she said.

Highlighting the challenges, she noted that the first barrier a girl child in India faces is the very act of being born. It is an unfortunate reality that many families may feel disappointment or even dismay upon hearing that a child is a girl, rather than a boy.

"The child sex ratio (0-6 years) in India has only seen marginal improvement, going from 914 girls per 1000 boys in the 2011 census to 929 girls per 1000 boys in the National Family Health Survey-5. There are also recent concerning reports of worsening sex ratios caused by likely female infanticide/foeticide in certain states," she said, adding that, however, many other states have seen improvements in their sex ratios.

As the chairman of the Juvenile Justice Committee (JJC) of the Supreme Court, Justice Nagarathna emphasised the importance of nutritional care, stating that without proper nourishment, all efforts to uplift the girl child may be futile.

"It is often the case that girl children are deliberately fed lesser or lower quality food than their brothers. While schemes such as the midday meal scheme, the 'anaemia mukt Bharat' programme and the POSHAN abhiyan have made large strides in ensuring access to quality nutrition for young girl children, it is important that the cascading and deleterious effects of early years' malnutrition on the girl child's ability to be physically active, think and problem-solve be sufficiently publicised," she mentioned further.

Addressing child marriage, she acknowledged the positive trend noted in successive National Family Health Surveys, which show a steady decline in child marriage prevalence. Over the past fifteen years, combined policy efforts and community engagement have halved the rate of child marriage in India.

"Through the enactment of laws such as the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 and in accordance with India's international obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, both state and Union Governments, occasionally in collaboration with UNICEF, have undertaken several positive steps. The need of the hour is to adopt holistic solutions that are adequately tailored to regional peculiarities, to ensure that interventions undertaken are most effective," she said.

Regarding the education of the girl child, Justice Nagarathna stated that quality education is essential not only for the empowerment of girls but also for the prosperity of the nation. She further noted that for India to become the global superpower it aspires to be, it must ensure that the young girls of today are adequately supported to become the women of the future who will shape the country's trajectory.

Justice Nagarthana said it is very promising to note that, as per the data contained in the NFHS, school attendance for young girls between the ages of 15-17 has improved significantly.

"However, the pursuit of education after the secondary level by young women and girls is still frustrated by high dropout rates. What are the reasons why young girls drop out of school? The girl child may be expected to sacrifice her education in its entirety or study a course that she is not very interested in so as to ensure that her brother is able to pursue his dreams. It is crucial that such virulent factors are adequately addressed. Education thus being provided must be free of stereotypes, of bias and ideology and must be able to mould the individual who undergoes it to become an upstanding member of society," she said.

She emphasised the need to expand trauma-informed and child-sensitive procedures in courts and police stations. She highlighted that between 2018 and 2022, only about 4.8 per cent of individuals arrested for human trafficking were convicted during this period, despite the large number of charge sheets filed. PTI MPL MNL MPL MPL MPL