Where next for China?: Birth ratio in India is also dwindling

doi:10.1136/bmj.333.7566.500

BMJ 2006;333:500 (2 September), doi:10.1136/bmj.333.7566.500

Letter

Where next for China?

Birth ratio in India is also dwindling

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

EDITOR—Similar to the Chinese government,¹ the governmentof India also adopted a policy of two children per couple, whichwas later modified to the one child norm, to keep a check onthe increasing population.

But until now the population is nowhere near being controlled,and the ratio seems to be increasingly imbalanced as the timepasses. In many villages, marriages occur much before the legalage of consent. Five to six children are born to each couple.The general feeling is more kids, more hands, and more income.The scenario is no different in cities, where the total numberof children born to a couple may be less, but at the cost offemale feticide (in spite of a law against prenatal determination).

This scenario will not change for many years. The only hopeseems to be women's education, because it is rightly said thatby educating . . . [Full text of this article]

Charu Chanana, registrar

All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi 110029, India charuchanana@rediffmail.com

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