Missing - 50 million women and girls

The discovery of 50 decomposed female fetuses in two wells behind a clinic run by two quacks in a small town in Punjab recently turned the spotlight on a paradox of prosperity: discrimination against girls, even before they are born, increases with wealth. It's more common among women of the upper castes and classes in India's richer states.

In contrast, a group of traditional bangle sellers - who have launched a vigorous campaign against the killing of female fetuses - are humble and relatively poor folk. 'Women activists are now ranged against a powerful mafia of doctors and private nursing homes,' says community leader Rameshwar Dayal in Rajasthan state.

Even formidable women leaders like Indira Gandhi and her daughter-in-law, Congress party president Sonia Gandhi, have been unable to lessen the gender bias against girls and women. In fact, many reforms are turning out to be counterproductive. Laws to better the social and economic position of women have reinforced male prejudice. Modern methods of telling the sex of fetuses contribute to the abuse.

Despite the ban on dowries, a bride is murdered every 93 minutes, on average, because her husband or his family are dissatisfied with her trousseau.

Unicef, the UN children's fund, estimates that 50 million girls and women are missing from India's population because of systematic gender discrimination. There are fewer than 800 women per 1,000 men in India. The international female-to-male ratio is 1,050 to 1,000.

A disgruntled midwife tipped off the police about the Punjab clinic. The owners, who have been arrested, charged up to 15,000 rupees (HK$2,600) for abortions.