LEGAL ENFORCEMENT, SOCIAL AWARENESS, AND SOCIAL WORK INTERVENTION AGAINST FEMALE FOETICIDE: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY OF TEACHERS IN NAGPUR MUNICIPAL SCHOOLS

Abstract

Gender conflicts and social inequality amongst men and women in India has persisted overtime due to female foeticide that has contributed negatively to the social justice, human rights and equality. Despite the coming to existence of the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act [PCPNDT Act] and the continuous advocacy that had to take place, the declining child sex ratio in some of the areas portrays that there are violations of the law, ignorance among the people and level of actions of the community. The teachers particularly those working in the municipal schools are in the vantage point because they are the agents of the social change who can shape the attitude of young learners and their families as well. The existing empirical research study will be centered on the extent of legal awareness, the effectiveness of social awareness campaign and the effects of social work intervention in preventing female foeticide among the teachers in Nagpur Municipal Schools. In the research, the level of the knowledge of the teachers concerning the PCPNDT Act, their perception related to gender bias, and the activities they engage in the field of the awareness promotion using both the analytical methods and the structured questionnaire are evaluated. It is estimated that the results will show the significance of gaps in the enforcement and the outreach of the community and establish the potentials to harmonize the schoolbased social work practices. The study article will also help in policy debate as it will be suggestive of multi-stakeholder responses to make enforcement of the law more effective, gender sensitive regarding gender-sensitization programmes, and will empower teaching fraternity as the main driving force of change in halting acquisition of reproductive technology to prevent female foeticide.