Haryana, eleven years since the initiation of the 'Save Daughters and Educate Them' campaign by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in January 2015 in Panipat, faces a major blow as the latest data on sex ratio at birth shows the lowest figures in recent history.
According to figures released by the health department in the state, the SRB for the first four months of 2026 has declined to 898 girls for every 1,000 boys. This indicates a drastic reduction from the 909 observed in the corresponding period of 2025, with an impressive decrease from last year's average figure of 923. Out of 1,61,258 births registered between January and April this year, 84,953 were boys while only 76,305 were girls.
This downward trend has caused enough alarm within the government to prompt an unusual intervention involving religious leaders. Pandits, maulvis, and granthis across the state are now being asked to counsel newlywed couples against sex selection— a move that highlights the limitations of purely administrative measures.
The situation is particularly dire in Charkhi Dadri, a district carved out of Bhiwani in 2016. It had initially recorded an SRB of 891 in 2020, which climbed to 913 in 2025, only to plummet to a staggering 768 in the first four months of 2026. Looking at the same January-to-April window, the district's ratio fell from 875 last year to just 768 this year.
However, the decline is not entirely uniform across the state. Rewari managed an improvement, rising from 882 in 2025 to 906 in the early months of this year. Meanwhile, Nuh, which historically maintains a relatively stable SRB despite facing economic challenges, saw only a marginal dip from 918 to 913, remaining one of Haryana’s better performers.
A closer look at other districts highlights the scale of the crisis. Ambala’s ratio fell to 843 from 906 during the same four-month period in 2025, Mahendragarh dropped from 899 to 847, and Fatehabad witnessed a steep decline from 980 to 893. Jhajjar and Rohtak, which have previously shown stronger numbers, both rested at 876, down from 939 and 881 respectively.
The contrast becomes even more pronounced when compared against the full-year figures of 2025. Last year, Panchkula led the state with a ratio of 971, followed by Fatehabad at 961, Panipat at 951, and Karnal at 944. Fast forward to the start of this year, and Panchkula has slid to 902, while Fatehabad’s collapse from 961 to 893 stands out as one of the most severe in the state. Similarly, Sirsa has fallen from 937 to 883, and Hisar has dropped from 926 to 888, underscoring a widespread and worrying trend across the region.
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