Articles by Leela Visaria

This article focuses on the lacunae and limited understanding of the linkages between education, population and development. Data on this is important for realistic manpower and expenditure planning in the light of the Right to Education Act which aims to provide eight years of free and compulsory elementary education to all children between the ages of six and 14. Demographics related to how many children are in the population and those that will be born in the coming years are required in order to plan for the number who will need to be educated at different levels, the number of teachers needed at various stages of the education ladder and to be trained, the number and the type of infrastructural facilities needed and so on. Also, for sustainable development it is necessary to provide good quality education, including teaching employable skills.

This study examines three issues related to domestic violence in India on the basis of data from the third National Family Health Survey. It shows that a significant proportion of women, regardless of their socioeconomic background, accept power differentials based on sex and that men have a right to discipline them. It also reveals that men from violent homes are significantly more likely to use violence against their wives. Most women do not seek help for the violence suffered, and the few who do, tend to steer clear of social service organisations and the authorities.

We may have to wait for the 2011 Census to see the final result of measures taken to improve the child sex ratio in India. Until then, we should adopt more stringent steps to make the Pre-conception and Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act of 2003 more effective. Against the backdrop of the text and implementation of the previous Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Act of 1994, this article analyses the challenges ahead and the role of advocacy measures to prevent an increasing deficit of women in the population.

Despite the legalisation of abortion in India, morbidity and mortality continue to remain a serious problem for a majority of women undergoing abortions. A lack of reliable information, wide regional and rural-urban differences and a thin research base all make it difficult for policy-makers, administrators and women's health advocates to develop strategic interventions. This article highlights issues that emerged from eight qualitative research studies that formed part of the Abortion Assessment Project - which sought to create an evidence-based body of knowledge on all facets of induced abortion. These studies have thrown up some common patterns and themes, such as the unmet needs for contraception and abortion, the question of son preference, the preference for private providers and the neglected needs of the single, widowed or separated women. More crucially, they highlight the need to integrate diverse viewpoints that would further ease progression towards the common goal of making abortion an infrequently used but safe alternative for women faced with an unwanted pregnancy.

This article presents the results of an enquiry into domestic violence conducted in rural Gujarat. The sample survey shows the severity and the endemic nature of violence. Forms of and reasons for violence as also social and demographic characteristics associated with violence are discussed.