Maharashtra: 'Eligible bachelors' take out march seeking brides in Solapur
In an attempt to highlight the problem of the skewed male-female ratio, many 'eligible bachelors' in Maharashtra's Solapur took out a march looking for brides for themselves. According to PTI reports, the "bridegroom morcha" was organized on Wednesday. Later, they submitted a memorandum at the Solapur collector's office, seeking implementation of the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act to enhance Maharashtra's male-female ratio.
More about the march
This memorandum mentioned above also urges the Eknath Shinde-led state government to arrange brides for these eligible bachelors who took part in the march. Numerous bachelors, dressed in traditional wedding outfits, reached the collector's office on horses, accompanied by band music, to demand brides for themselves. Jyoti Kranti Parishad founder Ramesh Baraskar, who organized the event, highlighted Maharashtra's male-female ratio issue.
889 girls per 1,000 boys in Maharashtra: Baraskar
Meanwhile, Baraskar also alleged that Maharashtra's sex ratio was 889 girls per 1,000 boys. "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," he said. "This inequality exists because of female foeticide and the government is responsible for this disparity," Baraskar added.
National Family Health Survey's data on India's sex ratio
According to the fifth National Family Health Survey (NFHS) data, India's overall sex ratio is now at par with the developed nations. As per the statistics, India has 1,020 women for every 1,000 men. The NFHS 2019-2021 numbers also suggest that the country made significant improvements in the past five years when the sex ratio was just 991 in 2015-16.
13 states still have fewer females than males
The survey mentioned above also revealed that union territories and 13 states still had fewer females than males. In an urban versus rural study, the sex ratio was found to be skewed in favor of males in rural areas of 14 states. Meanwhile, 22 Indian states had a sex ratio favoring males in urban areas.
Delhi has worst rural sex ratio among states: NFHS data
The union territory of Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli has the worst urban sex ratio, with 775 females per 1,000 males. Meanwhile, the national capital Delhi had the worst rural sex ratio of 859 among all Indian states.
