A survey released by National Family Health Survey (NFHS) has revealed that approximately 79 percent women and 78 percent men in India want to have at least one daughter in their family. Contrary to general perception, couples in the country are increasingly wanting to have a daughter.
The survey finds that the number of women and men wanting a daughter has registered a significant rise from figures of 74 percent and 65 percent for women and men from the last time the survey was conducted – in 2005-06. What is even more interesting is that people belonging to Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribes, Muslims, people from rural areas and people belonging to lower economic strata are most keen to have a daughter. The most recent survey also finds that women with no education (85 percent) outnumber women who have passed Class 12 (72 percent) in the desire to have at least one daughter. Women in rural areas also prefer to have at least one daughter than their counterparts in urban areas.
In a country where most states have a gender ratio in favor of boys, the numbers are encouraging. However, a majority of families still prefer to have sons. The survey found that 82 percent women and 83 percent men overall want at least one son. Bihar (37 percent) and Uttar Pradesh (31 percent) lead the survey in terms of women wanting more sons.
Post Your Comments