Jind: Many-a-times the name of Jind and surrounding areas of Haryana have been in the news for a not so good reason. The city and its neighbouring areas have been infamous for the poor ratio of men and women.
Due to a strong preference for sons, the sex ratio in Jind stands at 871 females per 1,000 males compared with the national average of 940, according to the 2011 census. There is rampant female foeticide and infanticide in the area with many families forcing their womenfolk to undergo multiple abortions in the desire for a son.
However, when confronted with the question of this poor ratio, sitting MLA from Jind Dr Hari Chand Middha of the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) not just treated it as a non-issue but went ahead and blamed it on god's wish. "This is all god's desire, there is nothing we can do about it (ye sab bhagwan ki marzi hai. Hum kuch nhi kar sakte)," said the MLA who himself is a medical practitioner.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) rally in Jind on Saturday acknowledged the problem and accepted that speedy action needs to be taken over the same.
Counting on female foeticide as the main reason for the skewed sex ratio in the state, Modi said that the nine worst affected districts of the country were in Haryana. He also stressed on the need of safety for women.
"In Haryana for every 1000 males born there are only 875 girl child births. This is not god given, this is happening because we are committing a crime of killing the girl child before its birth," Modi said while adding that development is the only solution to this problem.
Emphasising on the importance that the party gives to women empowerment, Modi asserted that he has included 25 per cent women candidates in the Union Cabinet. "No party in the history of Haryana's politics has given more tickets to women than what BJP has done this time," he added while reaching out to the feminine gender.
BJP candidate from Jind, Surinder Singh Barwala, too, echoed the problem saying that the issue needs to be addressed. "There is no denying that this is a backward area. The more we develop, the less will be the issues of female foeticide," he said while assuring that he will work for the development while urging the voters to vote in his favour.
The veil-clad women in the district, though, shied away from commenting on the issue and just smiled their way through. The men, however, spoke and just rubbished the incidents of female foeticide in their locality.
"We have an equal share of men and women. Everyone goes to school," said a resident of the area.
The United Nations had in a report in July said that the dwindling number of girls had reached "emergency proportions" in India which is also a reason for rising cases of crimes against women.
There have been reports that some bachelor unions have also put forth a demand of "bride for votes" saying that they would vote in favour of the party which promises to get them married.
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