Shat Putra Vati Bhava and may all of them find a Vadhu

Traditional Hindu blessing for women 'Shat Putra Vati Bhava' (May you have hundred sons) also comes in a (lesser used) variation that promises eight sons - 'Ashta- Putravati Bhava' - eight being a 'good' number for Hindus. Not good enough. If we are counting on blessings alone, the old 'blessings' need an upgrade - a beta version, fast.

"A United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) study in 2007 said even if the sex ratio at birth were to remain at the ‘normal’ level of 950 girls per 1,000 boys until 2030, India is likely to have a female deficit of 25 million by 2030 in the marriageable age group of 20-49. More realistic studies that have factored in a limited and even further decline in the ratio have suggested the deficit could be anywhere between 29 and 34 million."

- from a fine feature article 'The Lost Girls' by Shreyasi Singh for Japan based current-affairs magazine The Diplomat. [Got the link via an email from Jason Miks, editor for the magazine.]


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