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Q What are the challenges you face in raising these issues?

A The biggest problem with family planning is nobody wants to talk about it because in 1977 (when prime minister Indira Gandhi declared a state of emergency), there was some coercion in terms of sterilization, especially male sterilization. The minute you touch the men, it’s a holy cow. There was a huge backlash. It is believed the Congress Party lost elections because of that. Politicians think being engaged with family planning means you lose an election, so they all stay away.

Q Can’t they talk about other types of family planning?

A It’s a lack of analysis, a lack of vision. Inaction in family planning comes at a very big price. For health, we can’t cope with the numbers. Families don’t have money to educate their children, to feed them. We have high levels of malnutrition and child mortality. An unwanted child has a 50 per cent higher chance of dying or being undernourished. With costs going so high, people don’t want to have more than two children and the government invests little in health and education.

A What can India learn from China’s one- and two-child policies?

A What not to do. China and India have something in common — a strong preference for boys and disproportionate male:female ratios. In India, sex ratios are worsening in every census. One result is slavery. People in Haryana are buying wives from Bengal. Sexual abuse of women, rapes and lack of respect are the biggest tragedy. Sex selection increases when you put in one-child, two-child norms.