Gadwal: District Medical and Health Officer (DMHO) Dr. J. Sandhya Kiran Mai conducted a review meeting with members of the District Advisory Committee on the implementation of the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act, 1994.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Sandhya Kiran Mai stated that there are 22 scanning centers operating in the district, all of which are being regularly monitored by the Health Department. She instructed that all qualified doctors running scanning centers must upload Form-F (the forms related to pregnant women’s scanning details) on the PCPNDT online portal and submit a hard copy to the District Medical and Health Office by the 5th of every month without fail.

The DMHO further warned that sex determination tests during pregnancy are strictly prohibited by law. Any person — whether conducting, encouraging, or undergoing such tests — will face three years of imprisonment and a fine of ₹50,000 under the PCPNDT Act.

She announced that the District Advisory Committee meetings will be conducted once every two months to ensure strict implementation of the Act. The committee members were also instructed to create awareness among the public at the field level about the legal consequences of sex determination.

Additionally, Dr. Sandhya Kiran Mai emphasized the need to educate adolescent girls about balanced nutrition, personal hygiene, anemia prevention, and hand hygiene as part of health awareness programs.

The meeting was attended by Dr. Damayanthi (Professor & Head, Department of Gynecology, Government Medical College), Dr. Sireesha (Professor & Head, Department of Pediatrics), Dr. Prasuna Rani (Maternal and Child Health Officer), K. Madhusudan Reddy (In-Charge Deputy DM&HO), B. Narsinglu (District Child Protection Officer), G. Nagaraju, G. Narasayya (CEA Section), G. Aruna (CA, Sakhi Center), M. Swathi (Sakhi Center), and NGO representative Parashuramudu.