Polygyny or the practice of having more than one wife is legal in India only for Muslims, but National Family Health Survey (NFHS) data shows it is almost as prevalent in other communities, though on the decline in all.

Sex ratio is perhaps one of the most important sociodemographic indices which reflect the socio-economic and cultural ethos of a country, more so with reference to the status of its women.

The high female infant mortality rates (Miller, 1985), the practice of female infanticide (Krishnaswamy, 1988), the neglect of female children with regard to access to health services, nutrition (Sen and Sengupta 1983) and education (Mankekar, 1985), and the sexual abuse of girls (Bhalerao, 1985)

Thanks to Keith Campbell [1], Dolly the wonder sheep has arrived in Scotland, at he modest price of $750,000. Mankind has been thus dragged yet nearer to the Huxleyean Brave New World.

There can be little doubt that the last two hundred years have seen advances in health which have seldom before been witnessed in human history.

We live in an era of paradoxes and contradictions - the reality was never so multifaceted, the issues never so complex. Everything around us seems to be melting and unfortunately the new forms acquired by the congealing of the molten mass leaves us little to rejoice at.