Eleventh Five Year Plan

186 Eleventh Five Year Planearlier reported on the WCP in their sectoral budgetsstopped doing so. Within the Ministry of WCD, thefinancial allocation for women specific schemesduring the Tenth Plan was Rs 1246 crore. As a resultof this modest allocation of resources and ineffectiveimplementation of existing schemes, we have fallenfar short of our Tenth Plan targets. Selected developmentindicators relating to women may be seen atAnnexure 6.1.DEMOGRAPHY6.9 Female population of the country rose marginallyfrom 48.1% of the total population in 1991 to48.3% of the total population in 2001, an increase of89.4 million. At 23.08%, the growth rate of femalepopulation for the 1991–2001 decade was slightlyhigher than the male population decennial growth rateof 22.26%. This is because life expectancy at birthfor women has been rising steadily from 58.6 years in1987–91 to 66.91 years in 2001–06; it is higher thanthe male life expectancy of 63.87 years. Demographicimbalances between men and women, however, continueto exist, even worsen, in certain regions.6.10 While the overall sex ratio improved slightlyfrom 927 in 1991 to 933 in 2001, the Child Sex Ratio(0–6 years) plummeted from 945 to 927. At 880, theSRB for 2003–05 was even lower. 16.11 During the decade 1991–2001, 70 districts in16 States and union territories recorded more than a50 points decline in sex ratio. Fatehgarh Sahib districtin Punjab 2 registered the lowest sex ratio at 754. Whatis truly worrying is the dip in child sex ratio in economicallyprosperous States like Punjab (793), 3 Delhi(865), Haryana (820), and Gujarat (878). 4 This negatesthe popular belief that female foeticide stems from illiteracyand poverty and will cease with economicgrowth (see Box 6.3). The Census of 2001 and SacharCommittee report (2006) also reveal that the sexratio varies across communities and social groups. At950, child sex ratio for Muslims is much higher thanHindus (925).HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE6.12 Discrimination against women and girls impingesupon their right to health and manifests itselfin the form of worsening health and nutrition indices.Thus, India continues to grapple with unacceptablyhigh MMR, IMR, and increasing rates of anaemia, malnutrition,HIV/AIDS among women. According toNFHS-3, incidence of anaemia has risen from 49.7%to 57.9% in pregnant women and from 51.8% to 56.2%in ever-married women within a period of seven years(1998–99 to 2005–06). This has raised anaemia amongchildren by 5 percentage points (to 79.2%) and is alsopartially responsible for the high MMR. Maternalmortality has a direct correlation with lack of accessibilityto health care facilities. Paucity of resources andage old discriminatory practices deny large numberof women access to good nutrition and care before,during, and after child birth, thus increasing theirmortality. Only 22% of mothers consume Iron FolicAcid (IFA) tablets for 90 days or more, and less thanhalf of them receive three ANC visits. As many as51.7% births take place without assistance from anyhealth personnel. Practices such as female foeticide alsoaffect women’s health, as they are forced to go throughmultiple pregnancies and abortions. As a result,although MMR has fallen from 398 in 1998 to 301 in2001–03 (SRS), we are far from meeting the TenthPlan target of reducing MMR to 200 per 100000 livebirths. States like UP(707), Uttaranchal (517), Assam(409), and MP (498) have very high MMRs. 56.13 While the mean age of marriage of women hasincreased from 15.5 years in 1961 to 19.5 in 1997,44.5% of women are still married off by the age of 18.1Registrar General of India 2003.2Missing: Mapping the Adverse Child Sex Ratio in India, 2003, Booklet compiled by Registrar General of India and Census Commissioner,the M/o Health and Family Welfare and UNFPA.3Sansarwal village of Patiala District, Punjab. A health survey showed an alarming figure of 438 girls for 1000 boys (HindustanTimes, 11 November 2007).4Missing: Mapping the Adverse Child Sex Ratio in India, 2003.5India, Registrar General and Census Commissioner (2004). Primary Census Abstract Total Population: Census of India 2001, NewDelhi, p. iii.