Odisha govt asks 5 low-ranking districts to take steps for improving sex ratio at birth

The Odisha government has asked five districts that ranked low in the number of female births for every 1,000 males born to intensify inspections, ensure verification of all records and undertake intensive awareness efforts to improve the sex ratio at birth.

The State Supervisory Board, set up under the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PC-PNDT) Act and led by Odisha Health Minister Mukesh Mahaling, identified Nayagarh, Angul, Dhenkanal, Ganjam and Khurda as the five lowest-performing districts in the state as per sex ratio at birth (SRB).

Jajpur has been adjudged the best-performing district in this index.

Mahaling said necessary steps will be taken to improve the sex ratio in these districts.

"District authorities have been directed to intensify inspections, ensure 100 per cent verification of records and undertake intensive awareness efforts to improve the sex ratio at birth," he said.

District-level committees will be strengthened, and more ultrasound clinics will be inspected and monitored, the minister said.

"Special emphasis will be given to creating public awareness," he said, while calling for stricter implementation of the PC-PNDT Act.

Between 2024 and 2026, district authorities conducted 649 inspections, and state authorities 11.

During the inspections, six illegal ultrasound clinics were sealed, as many ultrasound machines were seized and disciplinary action was initiated against government doctors, officials said.