A government-sponsored sterilization program in India caused the deaths of eleven women. At least another 50 women are still in the hospital following their sterilization, and 20 more are in critical condition. The sterilizations were held in Chhattisgarh, a state in India.
The sterilizations were a measure by the Indian government to attempt population control. India is the second-largest most populous country in the world, following China, with 1.252 billion people in 2013. The Indian government was paying women 600 rupees, the equivalent of 10 USD, to voluntarily undergo a sterilization procedure.
India regularly holds day-long sterilization drives to encourage women to become sterilized. However, a sterilization drive on November 8 left many women, most of whom were under the age of 30, very ill. The Indian government is blaming a surgeon in Chhattisgarh, R.K. Gupta. Gupta was suspended before he began the sterilizations on November 8. Sources say Gupta sterilized 83 women in 6 hours.
Shivkumari Tandon, a health worker who works in the area surrounding Chhattisgarh, who participated in the drive to bring more women to become sterilized, is also being criticized by people in India.
"People are blaming me. People are afraid. Family planning will be stopped in my area. Nobody will come forward to do this now," Tandon said.
According to a 2006 survey conducted by National Family Health, more than a third of married women in India are sterilized, compared to only 1 percent of men. During these government-sponsored sterilization drives, both vasectomies and tubectomies are available, but most couples opt for the woman to be sterilized.
"There's disproportionate pressure on women to be sterilized versus men as it's easier for a health worker to get in touch with a women when she has a baby. Also it's a patriarchal society. Men haven't been involved in the family planning discussion," said Kerry McBroom, who works at the Reproductive Rights Initiative at Human Rights Law Network in India.
Some women choose to become sterilized because they cannot afford any more children, and jump at the chance to have the procedure paid for by the government.
Harsh Vardhan, India's previous health minister, said that from 2010 to 2013, India had 15,264 failed sterilizations.
The first woman to die during this week's sterilization drive was Janaki Bai, 30, who had her sterilization done in Chhattisgarh. She died on Monday.
