Engendered species, our broken progress: Despite growth, India’s gender bias endures as sex ratios slide in key states

Decades of progress, it seems, has done little to shake India's entrenched bias against female children. Despite rapid educational and economic growth, preference for sons remains firmly rooted, dictating life and death decisions even before birth. Each release of sex ratio data jolts the nation with a grim reminder of this enduring reality. Last week delivered one such shock: Delhi's sex ratio at birth fell to 920 girls per 1,000 boys in 2024, down from 929 in 2022. These numbers underscore not only persistent gender bias, but also the likely use of increasingly sophisticated illegal prenatal sex determination, despite laws strictly banning such practices. India's overall sex ratio at birth has shown some improvement, rising to 933 females per 1,000 males in 2022-23. But these regional variances are disturbing.

Data from Delhi's Directorate of Economics & Statistics reveal that 2024 saw both fewer births and more deaths, with infant mortality, and diseases such as septicemia and congenital heart ailments, often worsened by neglect. The crisis extends to neighbouring Haryana, where the sex ratio at birth has plunged from 923 girls per 1,000 boys in 2019 to 910 in 2024, following years of modest recovery. Yet, foeticide is not the only scourge. Journalist Amitabh Parashar, in the 2024 podcast The Midwife's Confession, documents over three decades of admissions by Bihar midwives who acknowledge killing newborn girls at the behest of male family members.

The grim realities in Delhi and Haryana, despite being the nerve centres of administrative attention, expose a shameful truth: decades of policy interventions and development cannot override cultural norms that devalue girls and women, leaving a long shadow of mortality, discrimination and lost potential across generations. This is a battle India cannot afford to lose. The state must demonstrate greater intent and invest far more resources to turn the tide.