26 SOPTAL SCIENTIST reliance on it to achieve the birth target of 32 per thousand. However, as the Status of Women Committee Report stated, this over-dependence on the ter-minal method was a wrong strategy as it raised too many fears in women's minds, often caused ill health from lack of medical attention after operation22 It is significant to note that the percentage of tubectomy to total sterlizations has shown an extremely interesting trend over the years. Upto 1959, they made up the major share of sterilisations. During the period 1960 to 1975-76 except for a variation between 1972-73 and 1974-75, the percentage oftubectomies constituted less than 35 per cent of the total sterilisations. In 1977-78, this proportion jumped to 80.2 per cent even though the number of sterilisations declined sharply during that year (8.26 million to 0.94 million). Of the 0.94 million sterilisations during that year, as high as 0.76 million were tubectomies. Here, it must be stressed that women's adoption of contraceptive measures depends on the tatter's accessibility and the husband's attitude towards the final family size yet, 'women onl/ measures account for approximately 75 per cent of total modern contraception in the country. Tubec-tomies outnumber vasectomies by four to one. This reflects the significant influence on women's fertility of factors external to the programme. In 1976, the New National Population Policy placed renewed emphasis on the use of incentives nad disincentives to achieve the target of 4.3 million sterilizations for the year 1976-77 (the figures for that year wasf 8.6 million). State governments were given directives for a massive campaign for sterilization and the option to use the incentive/disincentive scheme. The scheme caused widespread panic in the cduntry as officials (from zilla parishad officials, school teacher^ to government family planning officials) under pressure to 'fill their quotas' took recourse to forced and indiscriminate sterilizations. The targets were achieved under force and at tKecostof human dignity and many deaths were reported due to the operations being performed in unhygienic conditions. Popular reaction to such coercion proved an important factor for the absolute defeat suffered by the Congress(I) government in the 1977 parliamentary elections. Although the political debacle of 1977 put an end to the blatant use of state power to force the pace of sterilization, the central government's policy in this sphere continues to suffer from contradictions and an inability to implement the measures that it identifies in Plan documents. The sixth Five Year Plan called for a popular movement for a small family. Social analysts who support the call for population control, stress the need for an ideology to popularise this movement^. According to us, the only ideology that can support such a movement lies in women's demand-for their right to safe contraception and voluntary maternity. Fof women to be able to assert this right, it is necessary to improve their overall status in the family and community, bring the service within their reach, reduce infant mortality and improve the health and nutritional status of families, especially children and mothers*. This, however, calls for elimination of poverty and unemployment, to