Health Department officials raided hospital, clinics, and scan centres across Belagavi district on Saturday, following instructions from Nitesh Patil, Deputy Commissioner, to see if they were checking the gender of fetuses or if they were engaged in female foeticide.
The direction comes after seven dead fetuses were found in a stream in Mudalgi town on Friday.
A team, led by Mahesh Koni, district health officer, raided Kanakareddy Hospital, Navajeevan Hospital, Venkateshwar Matrimony Hospital, and other clinics in Mudalgi.
Health Department sources said that one of the doctors in Kanakareddy Hospital had admitted that the fetuses belonged to their hospital.
The fetuses that were stored in seven plastic bottles have been sent for testing.
Mr. Patil said that the raids would continue till all clinics, hospitals, and scanning centres were covered.
“Sex determination and female foeticide are punishable offences under the Prenatal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Act, 1994, amended in 2002. Strict action would be taken against doctors and other centres that were engaged in such illegal acts,” the DC said.
