Q.What is amniocentesis ? Why do a statutory ban is imposed on this technique ?

Amniocentesis analyses amniotic fluid to detect the foetus's sex or genetic abnormalities; its use for sex determination is legally banned in India because of rampant misuse leading to female foeticide.

Amniocentesis is a foetal-diagnostic technique in which a small amount of amniotic fluid (which contains sloughed-off foetal cells) is withdrawn from the amniotic sac, usually to check for chromosomal abnormalities or metabolic disorders in the foetus; the sex chromatin pattern of the foetal cells present in this fluid can also reveal the sex of the foetus. In India this technique was widely misused by some clinics to determine foetal sex, following which many parents chose to abort female foetuses due to a cultural preference for sons -- causing a serious, worsening decline in the child sex ratio. To curb this practice, the Government of India enacted the Pre-conception and Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act (PC-PNDT Act), imposing a statutory ban on the use of amniocentesis …