The Other

I know so much has been said and written but to my amazement all this hullabaloo didn’t even manage to raise an eyebrow. The dismal national female over male ratio of 933:1000 insinuates us to take action, raise our voices, create awareness, discuss.

For starters; let me serve you some bare facts –

• 1 out of every 6 girls does not live to see her 15th birthday.
• Every sixth girl child's death is due to gender discrimination.
• Condition of majority of those who survive is no good, as 22 million girls below the age of 18 years are forced into marriage against their wishes many a times to males twice their age.
• Female mortality exceeds male mortality in 224 out of 402 districts in India.

Unfortunately a girl is considered expendable by our society. It is we (the society) who are unfortunate not the girl. Cases of female feoticide are swelling at a fast pace. In this mad spree of slaughter, the main culprit is urban India. Our millennium cities and metros: the torch bearers of “shining India”. Haryana one of the rich and prosper state of India occupies the top slot. If by luck or chance they survive the feoticide, they are abandoned or chucked in a dustbin or sewer.

The castigation that starts in the womb doesn’t stop after the birth. We think that child marriage and sati are old, rusted and retired. Unfortunately, they are accepted and practiced. In Rajasthan, sati is worshipped and encouraged. In child marriage, though the boy continues his education but the girl is deprived of her right to education. She is supposed to learn housework, also look after her younger siblings.

Nature requires balance for smooth functioning. Male and female both are necessary for the sustenance of human species. Tampering with natural biological order we will only harm ourselves. Imagine advising your son eligible for marriage not to get married as there are not enough girls available to find a match for him. A girl is also a citizen of this country. She enjoys the same rights as boy.