Which programme of the Government of India directly targets at improving sex-ratio?

Beti Bachao Beti Padhao

The correct answer is Option (3) - Beti Bachao Beti Padhao

Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) is a government scheme aimed at addressing the declining child sex ratio (CSR) and related issues of female foeticide and women's empowerment. It focuses on creating awareness and advocacy for the protection and education of the girl child, thus directly targeting the improvement of the sex ratio.

Option 1: Widow Pension: This scheme provides financial support to widowed women, especially those from poor families. It helps improve women’s welfare, but it has no link to the sex ratio or the issue of girl child survival or birth rates.

Option 2: Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Act: This Act (also known as the PCPNDT Act) aims to prevent sex-selective abortions by banning the misuse of ultrasound and other techniques to determine the sex of the foetus. It supports improvement of sex ratio, but it is a law, not a government programme.

Option 4: Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana. This is a savings scheme for the education and future of the girl child. It encourages families to save money for their daughters, promoting financial security and education, but it does not directly address or target the sex ratio. 

NCERT Text: "Sometimes economically prosperous families decide to have fewer children – often only one or two now – they may also wish to choose the sex of their child. This becomes possible with the availablity of ultra-sound technology, although the government has passed strict laws banning this practice and imposing heavy fines and imprisonment as punishment. Known as the Prenatal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Act, this law has been in force since 1996, and has been further strengthened in 2003. However, in the long run, the solution to problems, like bias against girl children, depends more on how social attitudes evolve, even though laws and rules can also help. Recently, the Government of India has introduced the programme, ‘Beti-Bachao, Beti-Padhao’. It can prove to be an important policy to increase the child sex ratio in the country. "