LOST DAUGHTERS: Women are an endangered species in India. "Raising a daughter," said an old Punjabi saying, "is like watering your neighbor's garden." In the last 20 years India has lost about 10 million girls to sex selection. Due to the devaluation of women and expensive dowries required by the groom's family, women are holding out for boy children. Sons are preferred in India because boys will be more prosperous and take care of their aging parents. They carry on the family name and are the ones to inherit family wealth. Girls are seen as a drain on family resources. Many women rely on illegal ultrasounds to determine sex, leading to the aborting of girl fetuses. The long-term effects are coming to fruition. Despite its status as one of the world's largest democracies, India is a country where women suffer a low status. A beggar woman shares the sidewalk with a stray dog while a man waves her away.