Latest news with #PC&PNDTAct
Time of India
21-05-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Sex ratio shows improvement in Sundargarh
Rourkela: The sex ratio at birth in Sundargarh district has shown a marked improvement, rising to 957 in 2024 from 934 in the previous year, officials announced at a district-level meeting on Wednesday. The district advisory committee and task force committee meeting on Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PC&PNDT) Act, 1994, was chaired by district collector and magistrate Manoj Satyawan Mahajan, who expressed his satisfaction over the positive trend. During the meeting, officials reviewed the current status of ultrasound sonography (USG) clinics in the district and discussed registration and renewal procedures. The committee also addressed various aspects of implementing the PC&PNDT Act . "We will intensify IEC campaigns in low-performing areas," said Mahajan, who also serves as the district appropriate authority for PC&PNDT Act. He urged citizens to report any instances of illegal sex determination to his office or the chief district medical and public health officer. The meeting was attended by Dr Guruprasad Mahanta, chief district medical and public health officer, Dr Chulabati Sahu, additional district public health officer (family welfare) and other senior district officials. The district administration remains committed to preventing sex-selective practices and ensuring strict implementation of the PC&PNDT Act, officials said.
The Print
17-05-2025
- Health
- The Print
How a procedural lapse led to acquittal of Haryana doctor-couple in a 19-yr-old PNDT Act case
Justice Jasjit Singh Bedi emphasised that under Section 17(3)(b) of the Act, the District Appropriate Authority (DAA)—which is responsible for regulating and enforcing the provisions of the Act within a district and filing such complaints—must be a three-member committee appointed through an official notification. In its order pronounced Thursday, the HC observed the complaint against Dr Mahender Kamboj and Dr Renu Kamboj, the directors of M/s Kamboj Ultrasound and Diagnostic Pvt Ltd, was not instituted by a competent authority as required by the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act, or the PC & PNDT Act. Gurugram: A doctor couple from Haryana's Hisar booked under the prohibition of sex selection act 19 years ago has been acquitted by the Punjab and Haryana High Court on the grounds that proper procedures were not followed while filing the case against them in 2006. 'In the instant case, the complaint was filed by Dr S.K. Naval (then civil surgeon) alone and it ought to have been filed by a three-member Committee, appointed by a Notification under Section 17 of the PC and PNDT Act. The same not having been done, the very complaint itself is not maintainable and therefore, the subsequent proceedings and conviction stands vitiated,' Justice Bedi stated in the judgment. The case dates back to October 2006 when, following reports in various media outlets, the then civil surgeon of Hisar constituted a team that inspected the premises of Kamboj Ultrasound and Diagnostic Pvt Ltd. The team seized records and sealed four ultrasound machines, alleging multiple violations of mandatory record keeping requirements through Form F under the PC & PNDT Act. Both the doctors were convicted by the Hisar Chief Judicial Magistrate in January 2008. They were sentenced to three years of rigorous imprisonment and fined Rs 5,000 each for the alleged contravention of the Act's Section 4(3)—prohibits sex determination, read with Rule 9, which mandates keeping a record of the procedure in a prescribed manner. The doctors received an additional two years of imprisonment and Rs 5,000 fine for violating Section 5(1)(b) of the Act, which mandates written consent from the pregnant woman in a prescribed format before conducting a sex determination test. Although their sentences were reduced to two years by the Sessions Court in August 2008, the doctors challenged the conviction in the high court, where their sentences were suspended pending the final verdict. The high court's ruling hinged on several earlier judgments, particularly the 2014 decision in the Help Welfare Group Society versus State of Haryana case which clarified that even when appointed for part of a state, the District Appropriate Authority must be a multi-member body consisting of three officials. The court rejected the state's argument that this interpretation came only in 2014 and should not apply retroactively to these cases. Justice Bedi cited Supreme Court precedents to establish that 'the interpretation of a provision relates back to the date of the law itself and cannot be prospective of the judgment'. 'When the Court decides that the interpretation given to a particular provision earlier was not legal, it declares the law as it stood right from the beginning of its promulgation,' the judgment noted, referring to Supreme Court decisions in the Lily Thomas versus Union of India and the Sarwan Kumar versus Madal Lal Aggarwal case. The court further pointed out that the Special Leave Petition filed by the state against a similar judgment in the Dr Ritu Prabhakar versus State of Haryana case had been dismissed by the Supreme Court in November 2016, reinforcing the interpretation that complaints under the PNDT Act must be filed by a properly constituted three-member authority. With this judgment, the 19-year-old case against the doctor couple finally comes to a close, establishing an important precedent regarding procedural requirements for prosecution under the PNDT Act. (Edited by Ajeet Tiwari) Also Read: Ultrasound that doesn't reveal sex of foetus in the works & what it means for pregnant women
Time of India
16-05-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Sonography machine sealed in Petlad for alleged fetal sex determination
Vadodara: A sonography machine at a private hospital in Petlad was sealed by health officials from Anand district for allegedly conducting illegal sex determination tests in violation of the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PC&PNDT) Act, 1994. Ishita Hospital, operated by gynaecologist Dr J K Vaghela, is now facing punitive action under the act, which prohibits fetal sex determination and makes it illegal for medical practitioners to disclose the sex of a fetus to expectant parents. Anand's chief district health officer (CDHO), Dr Piyush Patel, confirmed the development, stating that special teams of medical officers have been formed to conduct surprise inspections across the district to check for violations. During one such surprise inspection, conducted by Dr Rajesh Patel, taluka health officer Dr K D Pathak, Petlad taluka health officer Gunvant Isvarvadia, and programme officer Vijay Vaghela, the hospital was allegedly found flouting the PC&PNDT Act. "The sonography machine was sealed with immediate effect and all hospital records were seized to facilitate further legal action," said Dr Patel. He further warned that such surprise checks will continue across Anand district, and strict action will be taken against any hospital or doctor found in violation of the Act.
