Karnataka: Raid at private hospital over allegations of illegal sex determination

Shivamogga: A private hospital in Karnataka's Sagar city was found indulging in illegal sex determination activities after the Shivamogga District Inspection and Monitoring Committee (DIMC) conducted a raid at the hospital on Tuesday and seized the scanning machine and documents. 

The officials received information about the illegal sex determination activities at the hospital during Deputy Commissioner R. Selvamani’s village stay programme at Saidur village on March 18. 

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At a primary health centre, a woman told the officer that the staff members of the private hospital, Sanjeevini Hospital, had determined the sex of a foetus. The DC then gave subsequent orders to the DIMC officials to conduct a raid at the hospital, reports the Hindu. 

The officials then visited the hospital and seized the scanning machine and documents. Rajesh Suragihalli, District Health Officer said that the information collected from the raid would be submitted before the PC & PNDT advisory committee for further action. 

The District Inspection and Monitoring Committee, set up under the PC and PNDT Act 1994, has the power to conduct regular inspections at healthcare institutions to check for illegal sex determination. 

The PC-PNDT Act was enacted on 20 September 1994 with an aim to prohibit prenatal diagnostic techniques for the determination of sex in order to prevent sex-selective abortions. It was enacted to stop female foeticide in the country. 

Medical Dialogues team had earlier reported about the arrest of three people, including a doctor by the Haryana health department as part of its joint investigation against inter-state illegal abortion and sex determination of fetuses. The health officials investigated the case based on a tip-off regarding the racket, which had spread to other states as well. 

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