SKEWED SEX RATIO AT BIRTH IN INDIA

Abstract

SummaryScientists commonly use world average data on sex ratio at birth for India for want of dependable ones. Here an attempt is made to redress the problem to some extent. It is shown that this ratio has been high in India since the 1950s. The ratio has been strikingly high, even prior to the time of inception of prenatal sex identification technologies. The ratio shows a rising trend due to several biological reasons. In addition, it has been rising sharply for a couple of decades due to some socio-medical factors. The natural sex ratio at birth in India is noticeably higher than the world average.