There has been a rising trend in the number of reported cases of complications and failure following sterilisation.
The recent data by the health ministry paints a grim picture.
Number of failures following sterilisation procedures, which was approximately 6,045 in 2010, has gone up to 7,272 in 2012.
Significantly, 969 cases of failure have already been reported in 2013 up to March.
Likewise, the number of complications following sterilisation have also gone up over the years.
As per the health ministry data, while the complications arising out of sterilisation were 131 in 2010, it rose to 267 in 2012 and 273 cases have already been reported this year till March 2013.
It has also been seen that men are hesitant to undergo sterilisation as more women undergo tubectomy than men opting for vasectomy. Even as sterlislisation continued to be the mainstay of family planning programmes, male vasectomy have not found many takers This, even when the doctors say that it is easier to sterilise men as compared to women. Data received from the states/UTs show that out of the total number of vasectomy and tubectomy cases for the year 2011-2012, maximum number of cases have been of female sterilisation. The numbers of tubectomy are more in all states and UTs. Gender biasness is even seen in big states as well. Madhya Pradesh, which have been recording maximum number of sterilisation cases since 2010, too reveal that the number of tubectomy are much more than vasectomy.
In Madhya Pradesh, while 42,818 cases of vasectomy were recorded for 2010-2011, the number of cases of tubectomy were much higher and stood at 6,39,032 for the same period.
Even for the year 2011-2012, the cases of tubectomy in Madhya Pradesh were reported to be 5,50,969 as compared to vasectomy which were only 46, 428 for the same period.
Even in Andhra Pradesh, the cases of tubectomy were 13,590 for 2011-2012. However, vasectomy cases were recorded at 13,590. The trend is followed in small states and UTs as well. In Chandigarh, the number of cases of vasectomy were just 97 in 2011-2012 as compared to tubectomy which were 1,722.
Also, in places like Mizoram, Lakshadweep no vasectomy has been done in 2011-2012. Bihar has shown a jump in tubectomy cases from 2,77,123 in 2009-2010 to 490,871 in 2011-2012.
The earlier data had also revealed that while the total number of family planning acceptors has increased by 3.5 per cent in 2010 and 2011, sterilisation’s saw a marginal decline of 1.2 per cent. Of the total sterlilisations cases, vasectomy comprised of only 4.2 per cent.