A DESCRIPTIVE STUDY ON THE ENFORCEMENT OF LAWS PROHIBITING SEX SELECTION AND FEMALE FOETICIDE AND ITS INFLUENCE ON SOCIAL AWARENESS: ROLE OF SOCIAL WORK IN NAGPUR MUNICIPAL SCHOOLS

Abstract

The sex-selective behaviour and feminicide of foetus remain the most significant social and demographic illogical in India despite the harsh legal provisions. In an effort to outlaw sex selection and to regulate the process of prenatal diagnosis Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act, 1994 was enacted. However, the law is effective following the son prejudice, ineffective law enforcement, and enlightenment among citizens. The research I shall be conducting at present will be a descriptive research of the legislation on sex selection and female foeticide imposition and how it will impact the social enlightenment levels among the Nagpur Municipal School students. The paper further addresses the strategic location of the intervention by the social work to increase the powers of schools in the cultivation of legal awareness, change of attitude and gender sensitivity. The study measures the legal provisions, gender equality and the perceived effectiveness of the awareness programme through the use of survey and observation design to measure the level of legal provisions awareness level. The findings are assumed to define the gap between the law and the social perspective, highlight the need of the school-based initiative in the sphere of social work, and give recommendations that could be offered to increase the community engagement and preventive learning. This can be a contribution to the socio-legal discourse since the educational institutions and the social workers form the key stakeholders in the fight against genderbased sex selection and instilling a culture where the girl child is taken seriously