After a raid revealed a 10-metre (30 foot) well containing the remains of at least 50 female foetuses, the Indian government in the Punjab state launched an enquiry regarding state officials' involvement in setting up illegal clinics promoting foeticide.
District and local officials were told by the government to do regular surprise checks on clinics and ultrasound centres. A midwife tipped the police to Sahib Hospital (Patran) where they found skeletal baby remains and blood soaked cloths in a well.
Punjab has the lowest female sex ratio in India; foeticide is illegal yet many people prefer having a boy to a girl, so they abort and try again. According to experts, the preference is based on “an intensely patriarchal mindset and a dowry system”.
