Sterilization is the most popular method of contraception in India. The 1992-93 National Family Health Survey found that of the 36.2 percent of eligible couples using any modern method, most (30.7 percent) had been sterilized and only 5.5 percent were using temporary methods (IIPS 1995).

The notion of quality in the public health system is becoming increasingly an issue for policymakers and planners in India. The Eighth Five-Year Plan identified the poor quality of family welfare services as one of the factors

In recent years there has been a growing concern in many countries, including India, that public health and family planning programs have placed insufficient emphasis on the quality of their services (Ickis 1992; Khan et al. 1994; Mensch 1993; Miller et al. 1991).

Sterilization for men and women is the most commonly used contraceptive method both in India at large and in Uttar Pradesh.

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

STRONG preference for sons over daughters exists in the Indian subcontinent, east Asia, north Africa and west Asia unlike in the western countries [Muthurayappa et al 1997, Lancet 1990, Okun 1996].

IT is indeed a tall claim, almost an impossible task - to set in motion the immobile-to create spectators who would continue to perform.

The Shodhini experience has been able to draw upon a range of disciplines in an attempt to develop a woman-centered health care alternative.

The women's health movement in India today is fast gaining momentum, although there continues to be a vast gap between ground realities and women's aspirations. Women's groups are extremely active and are working towards the betterment of health care services nationwide.

Long back in 1971, the committee on the status of women in India was appointed by the Government of India to undertake a comprehensive examination of all the questions relating to the rights and status of women in the context of changing social and economic conditions in the country and new probl