Maharashtra Pcpndt Crackdown Sex Ratio Falls Decoy Operations Dr Vijay Khandewad

Maharashtra has registered 627 court cases under the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act from March 2024 to March 2026, of which 127 have resulted in convictions, while significantly stepping up decoy operations against illegal prenatal sex determination, Director of Public Health Dr Vijay Khandewad told The Indian Express.

As part of its action against illegal sex determination rackets, the state conducted 118 decoy (sting) operations during 2025-26 of which 13 were successful and 82 in 2024-25 of which 11 were successful, Dr Khandewad said.

Maharashtra Public Health and Family Welfare department document on the implementation of the PCPNDT Act shows that officials inspected nearly all of its 11,837 registered sonography centres. The renewed crackdown comes at a time when Maharashtra’s sex ratio at birth stands at 899 girls per 1,000 boys, according to the latest Sample Registration System (SRS) report, raising concerns that illegal prenatal sex determination continues despite nearly three decades of enforcement under the PCPNDT Act.

The document further states that 492 manufacturers and distributors of sonography and imaging machines had been registered with the State Appropriate Authority till February 2025. Since June 2012, the names of 219 doctors have been referred to medical councils for disciplinary action. Registrations of 62 doctors were cancelled by the Maharashtra Medical Council, 10 by the Maharashtra Council of Homoeopathy and four by the Medical Council of India.

The child sex ratio (0-6 years) in the state fell from 946 girls per 1,000 boys in 1991 to 913 in 2001 and 894 in 2011. Based on the expected biological sex ratio at birth, the document estimates that Maharashtra may have lost more than 4.06 lakh female foetuses during the decade preceding the 2011 Census.

Despite the stepped-up enforcement, Dr Khandewad said the challenge cannot be addressed through policing alone. “It is ultimately a question of mindset… The problem is that demand still exists in society. The more we investigate, the more we realise that there is demand. This is not just an issue of education; it is about how people think about gender,” he said.

He said the department would continue expanding decoy operations across the state. “During the decoy operations, we send pregnant women to the sonography centres, more such sting operations will be conducted in every district,” Dr Khandewad said, adding that operational details are kept confidential so as not to compromise investigations.

Highlighting the state’s informer reward scheme, he said, “To encourage whistleblowers, the state offers an informer reward of Rs 1 lakh for information leading to successful action against illegal prenatal sex determination.”

Responding to the state’s declining sex ratio at birth, Dr Khandewad said the issue reflected deep-rooted social attitudes. “There are multiple factors — social pressure, insecurity and preference for sons. It is not only the responsibility of the health department. Society as a whole has to change its mindset.”

The document further notes that courts had disposed of 462 of the 625 cases filed till February 2025. Of these, 127 resulted in convictions, 332 ended in acquittals or dismissals, three were withdrawn, while 163 cases remained pending.

Officials said that illegal prenatal sex determination is increasingly being facilitated through networks involving fake doctors and middlemen, rather than registered sonography centres. According to the department, portable ultrasound machines are allegedly used to conduct scans at women’s homes, after which women are referred to other locations for illegal abortions.

The government has also strengthened public reporting mechanisms. Till February 2025, the toll-free helplines 104 and 1800-233-4475 had received 1,124 complaints, of which 1,102 had been resolved. Authorities also responded to 30,202 public queries relating to the PCPNDT and MTP Acts. An online complaint portal launched on March 15, 2024, had received 103 complaints, with 82 resolved by February 2025.