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How The UP Population Control Bill Impinges On Women's Reproductive Rights
With Assembly elections looming in the horizon, the state of Uttar Pradesh announced a draft Bill titled ‘The Uttar Pradesh Population (Control, Stabilisation and Welfare) Bill, 2021’ earlier this month.
The draft legislation has managed to create an uproar in different communities due to the significant changes that it proposes. For a country that is touted to be taking on the title of the most populous in the world very soon, population control is a touchy topic that demands a sensitive approach. However, this draft Bill by the most populated state proposes heavy-handed measures to quell the growth.
The primary feature that the draft proposes is the incentivization of those who are willing to restrict their families to two children. Numerous benefits are listed to those who are willing to undergo voluntary sterilization and follow the “two-child” norm. It ranges from additional salary increments, parental leave, housing loan assistance to rebates on house tax, electricity, water charges and free health care. Under Section 6, these benefits are available to the public, while Section 4 dictates that these will also be applicable to government employees. They can also receive the benefits if the spouse of the government employee undergoes sterilization.
Further benefits are included in the proposal if sterilization is undergone after having only one child. Free education up to graduation and preference in government jobs for the single child are part of the plan.
Exacerbating existing gender inequalities
In a country like India where the burden of family planning falls disproportionately on women, “female sterilization will likely increase further if coercive population policies are implemented,” observes Poonam Muttreja, executive director of Population Foundation of India. This irreversible method is more complex than reversible male sterilization, but the uptake of each of these methods is severely skewed, with 36% uptake of female sterilization versus 0.3% uptake for male sterilization, reminds Muttreja.
A study published in the Public Library of Science (PLOS) provides data to back the fact that India has reported a skewed sex ratio at birth since the 1970s. Furthermore, Uttar Pradesh was found to have been among the ten states with the highest male child preference. Projections estimate that the highest deficits in female births will occur in the state, with a cumulative two million missing female births between 2017 to 2030. “This will be exacerbated if we impose the new draft UP Population Control Bill,” comments Muttreja.
At the time of unveiling the policy, UP CM Yogi Adityanath revealed that it aims to bring the birth rate down to 2.1 per thousand population by 2026 and to 1.9 by 2030. Currently, the birth rate is around 2.7 per thousand.
“Coercive population policies, which aim to limit the number of children a couple can have disproportionate impact those who are most vulnerable,” she says, adding that women and girls, who already have limited access to health and education services are worst affected. With COVID-19 magnifying existing inequalities, the proposed Bill will only impact the poorest and most marginalized.
The downsides to female sterilization
According to Patient, an online health directory, male sterilization is safer as it is less likely to need a general anaesthetic, it is also quicker and more effective. The risks associated with tubectomies include bleeding, infection, and damage to other organs. Complications may also arise if the woman has other conditions such as diabetes.
A study published in Reproductive Health, a medical journal, revealed that only 18% of women in Uttar Pradesh used sterilization as a means of family planning in contrast to the national average of 36%.
Sterilization had a limited role in contributing to the decrease in fertility rate in the state, which saw a 30% decline between 1999 to 2016. The study supports the fact that the fertility decline in Uttar Pradesh was driven by an increase in the use of contraceptive methods among married women.
Apart from the medical aspect of this policy, it also teeters the grey area in terms of legalities. The proposed Bill will contribute to dividing the population into those who are and are not sterilized. By incentivizing sterilization, it impinges on the constitutional right to equality, an observation put forward by several women’s rights organizations.
In a memorandum addressed to President Ram Nath Kovind, signatories from organizations including All India Democratic Women’s Association, Sama, Jan Swasthya Abhiyan, Saheli, and National Federation for Indian Women made a strong statement that the prevailing gap in abortion services will also result in an increase in abandoned wives and children, especially female children.
“The Bill is geared to control women’s fertility rather than improving women’s health and promoting women’s reproductive rights. The proposed Bill should be deemed unconstitutional since it violates the right to equality,” they write.
Read more: How The 'Restoration' Of A Sikh Woman Reveals The Voicelessness of Women
The way forward
Like many experts in the space, Muttreja is of the opinion that instead of adopting coercive policies the government should focus on taking tangible steps that have a proven track record of bringing down birth rates. “Investments in health and girl-child education and improving access to contraceptives are the most effective ways to reduce fertility and slow down population growth,” she says.
She cites the example of Sri Lanka where fertility rates were stabilized by simply increasing the age at marriage, a move that was made more effective by ensuring girls were educated. “What has made the difference is education, employment opportunities, and accessibility of contraceptives,” she concludes.
(Edited by Sanhati Banerjee)
