India – More awareness needed on safe abortion methods

More awareness needed on safe abortion methods
A large number of women are unaware of their rights to abortion

Pooja Biraia Jaiswal
April 10, 2019

According to data disclosed by the Delhi health department in a recent RTI reply, only one in ten abortions in the city are reported, while over 50,000 termination of pregnancies have taken place in the last five years. This is essentially due to a lack of data on the number of maternal deaths resulting from abortions. Although abortion is legal in India and is regulated under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, the lack of awareness about it and the stigma attached to it, have led a number of women resort to unsafe and non-medical methods of abortions which prove to be fatal and life threatening. A woman can safely terminate her pregnancy upto 20 weeks of gestation under the supervision and guidance of one or two medical practitioners and for those who want to terminate it beyond 20 weeks, must seek approval from the courts.

Continued: https://www.theweek.in/news/health/2019/04/10/more-awareness-needed-on-safe-abortion-methods.html