This ratio highly varies from state to state because even today, female foeticide has not been eradicated from society, and the girl child is killed every 1 minute in India. Many states have been seen to take action against it and balance the Child sex ratio in their state.
The Government of Punjab, as per the census 2011, has been able to take measures, and the child sex ratio has seen a slight decline. Presently, for every 1000 males in the state, there are 846 females present.
Child Sex Ratio in Punjab
The child sex ratio in Punjab has seen to steeply decline as per the census 2011 as compared to its neighbouring states like Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, etc.
Before understanding the child sex ratio in a particular state like Punjab, let us have a look at the definition of child sex ratio, what it actually means and how it is calculated.
Child Sex Ratio-A brief Overview
The child sex ratio in a country like India is defined as the number of females present per thousand males in a given population where the age group taken for the population is 0 to 6 years.
This ratio is calculated by keeping in mind the age of the population. The age taken for the males as well as the females should be the same. One can’t take the different ages for males and females and calculate the ratio respectively. Both males and females should fall under the age of seven.
As per the current data analysis, the ratio is seen to be disturbed. There are more females present as compared to the number of males.
As per the Indian census in 1982, 104 males were present for 100 females. Then it led to the ratio of 105.8 males for 100 females. In 2011, the ratio observed was 108.8 males per 100 females in India.
If we talk about the particular states, for example, Punjab and Haryana, the ratio is seen to be a little higher. As per the Indian census 2011, 118 males per 100 females were present in Punjab. This means that the child sex ratio is disturbed. More males are present as compared to females.
What leads to the unbalanced Child sex ratio?
The skewed child sex ratio in India is highly disturbing because the number of males is more as compared to the number of females.
At the time of birth, the girl child is killed mercilessly, and this leads to the disturbing child sex ratio. Female foeticide has increased because people come to know the gender of the unborn child due to prenatal sex determination. However, this practice is slowly getting faded, but female foeticide is still increasing due to a lack of education.
As the literacy rate is very low even in the developed states like Punjab, Delhi, and Uttar Pradesh, the Government is taking measures to control the problem and create a balanced sex ratio by introducing programs and schemes like Beti Bachao Beti Padhao to encourage people to educate their daughters.
Child Sex Ratio in Punjab as per the census 2011
As per the current observation, the child sex ratio in Punjab has improved a lot as compared to its neighbouring state Haryana.
As per the current data statistics, there are 846 females present per 1000 males under the age of 0-6 years. This number has risen from the previous census that calculated it for 798 per 1000 males.
This significant increase has been seen due to the strict imposition laid on the people opting for prenatal sex determination. The prenatal sex determination has been banned by the government to prevent the female foeticide.
The constant initiatives taken by the Punjab government with the introduction of several programmes like the Nanhi Chhaan Programme has created a lot of difference and has helped in curbing the problem of female foeticide.
The average literacy rate of Punjab as per the Census 2011
The average literacy rate of Punjab has seen a significant improvement over the past decade. In 2001, the literacy rate calculated was 69.7 per cent, and in the year 2011, the average literacy rate was found to be 75.8 per cent. A significant increase of 6 percent was observed.
As compared to the national literacy rate of 73 per cent, the literacy rate of Punjab is seen to be higher than the national average.
The total number of literates is 1,87,07,137 in Punjab as per the census 2011.
Conclusion
The child sex ratio in Punjab has been able to see a slight improvement due to the Government taking action against the female foeticide and empowering the females. Due to the improvement in the literacy rate in Punjab, the awareness against the female foeticide has increased, and people are taking pride in raising a daughter.