Haryana doc arrested for conducting sex determination test

Rewari, Apr 12 (UNI) Officials of the Haryana Health Department raided a local nursing home and caught a doctor conducting pre-natal sex determination test.

According to Dr N K Sharma, Director General, Health Services, who led the team, a woman was sent as a decoy patient to the Bhargava Nursing Home yesterday. Dr (Mrs) Vijay Bhargava conducted the test and disclosed the sex of the foetus.

The doctor was caught red handed while taking Rs 2350 from the patient for conducting the test. An ultrasound machine has been seized and the nursing home sealed.

Dr Sharma said that the health authorities had stepped up their campaign to check the declining sex ratio in Haryana which according to the 2001 census was 861 females to 1000 males which was the lowest among all states.

As many as 63 ultrasound machines have been seized so far by respective District Appropriate Authorities after 3204 inspections of various ultrasound clinics. Registration of 114 ultrasound centres had been suspended/cancelled for violation of various provisions of the PNDT Act.

A local court had on March 28 convicted a doctor for violating the PNDT Act. Charges had also been framed against a doctor of Nawal Diagnostic and Imaging Centre, Gurgaon, for violating the act while another doctor had been convicted to undergo vigorous imprisonment for one year.

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