Declining sex ratio in Punjab: determinants and implications

Like most Indian women, Punjabi women have lower social standing than men. Punjabi social scientists documenting sex-selective abortion trends in Punjab report deeply ingrained prejudice against girls. Punjabis see daughters as social and economic burdens. The high premium on sons and low demand for daughters explains the high demand for sex-selective abortions. Daughters’ weddings impose a heavy financial burden on families because of the practice of dowry. Dowry constitutes the giving of money and other goods by a bride's family to a groom's family. It varies and increases depending on a family's economic status. Dowry crimes include threats to the bride's family and post-nuptial harassment of the bride to extract more money from her family.

In Punjabi families, women traditionally do not inherit property. This fear of ancestral property being usurped by another family (the daughter's in-laws) further increases prejudice against daughters and drives the desire for sons.

Families generally want at least one male child, if not two. Since they aim for a two-child family, women only have two chances at producing a male child. Studies show that women whose first child is a girl display higher son preference than women who have had one boy.

Finally, son preference and sex-selective abortions are not limited to the illiterate, rural, and poor populations. Punjab is generally seen as a prosperous Indian state that has experienced high levels of economic development. The relative economic prosperity does, however, raise some questions about the financial motivations associated with the practice of sex-selective abortions in Punjab in particular and declining sex ratio of Punjab in general. Many consider the advent of Punjab's relative economic prosperity synonymous with the “Green Revolution.” The social impact of the Green Revolution affected Punjabi women intimately.)