In a bid to highlight skewed male-female ratio, eligible bachelors of Solapur district in Maharashtra took out a march seeking brides for themselves on Wednesday.
Jyoti Kranti Parishad, the outfit that organised the ‘bridegroom morcha’ later approached the district collector and submitted a memorandum seeking strict implementation of the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act to improve the male-female ratio in Maharashtra, according to news agency PTI.
The memorandum submitted to the district collector urged the state government to arrange brides for bachelors, who participated in the march.
Several bachelors, dressed in wedding costumes, riding horses and accompanied by band music reached the collector’s office and demanded brides for themselves.
“People may mock this morcha, but the grim reality is that youth of marriageable age are not getting brides just because the male-female ratio is skewed in the state,” said Ramesh Baraskar, the founder of the Jyoti Kranti Parishad, PTI reported.
Baraskar claimed that inequality exists in Maharashtra and claimed that the sex ration of the state was only 889 girls per 1,000 boys.
“This inequality exists because of female foeticide and the government is responsible for this disparity,” said Baraskar, according to PTI.
The youngsters who visitied the collector's office urged stricter laws to prohibit female foeticide and strengthen sex determination. they demanded strict punishment for those who break these laws.
A skewed male-female sex ratio indicates towards preference for male child and continued sex-selective practices in the country.
According to the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5) data 2021, Pune along with 17 districts in Maharashtra showed a sizeable dip in sex ratio at birth, reported the Indian Express.
NFHS -5 fieldwork for Maharashtra was conducted from June to December, 2019, by the Indian Institute of Health Management Research (IIHMR).