Maharashtra gears up for a fresh crackdown on illegal sex‑determination rings

On July 20, Pune will host a tense, high‑profile gathering of health bureaucrats, district surgeons and police officials. Chaired by Shiv Sena stalwart and Legislative Council member Neelam Gorhe, the session aims to take stock of how the Pre‑Conception and Pre‑Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act and the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act are being enforced in Pune, Satara, Solapur and Sangli.

The meet was called by Dr Vijay Kandewad, Director of Health Services (Primary). He’s invited senior health officers, municipal medical officers and the district health heads from the four districts – essentially anyone with a say in how the law is applied on the ground.

Why the urgency? Earlier this year, investigators unraveled a sprawling sex‑determination racket in Kedgaon, a village in Daund taluka. What began as a local scandal quickly expanded, with clues pointing to a coordinated network that operated across Pune, Satara, Solapur and Sangli. The police say the same crew was behind illegal prenatal tests and clandestine abortions for months.

During the meeting, officials will pore over the actions taken so far, judge how well the various enforcement agencies are coordinating, and sketch out tougher measures. Topics on the agenda include the misuse of portable ultrasound machines, the shadowy financial trails of illegal abortion rings, online money‑laundering tactics and the role of middlemen who hop from district to district.

Gorhe raised the issue earlier in the Maharashtra Legislative Council’s monsoon session, invoking Rule 97 to spotlight the lagging implementation of the PCPNDT and MTP statutes. She warned that what’s being seen in Pune, Solapur and Phaltan is not a series of isolated offences but a well‑organized network that needs a concerted response.

"Strong coordination between the health department, police and other agencies is the only way to dismantle these rings," Gorhe told the assembled officials. "Legal action must go hand‑in‑hand with community awareness and vigilant surveillance to improve our child‑sex ratio."

The police case, lodged at Yavat police station on May 20, lists nine arrests so far – five doctors among them – including Dr Atul Ankush Jadhav and Dr Sangeeta Pandurang Gaikwad. Two key suspects, Dr Mandar Mali of Kikvi village and Dr Sundaram Kadam of Uruli Kanchan, remain at large. Dr Mali has already petitioned the court for anticipatory bail, while the Special Investigation Team, led by Santosh Tasgaonkar, continues the hunt.

As the meeting draws to a close, participants hope to leave with a sharper, more unified strategy – one that not only tightens the legal noose around offenders but also educates the public about the horror of sex‑selective practices.