Abortion seekers in India battle social stigma, poor medical facilities despite its legal status

A 2019 study published in the British medical journal BMJ Global Health unveiled that approximately two-thirds of abortions in India are categorised as unsafe.

Written by Sushmita Panda
October 18, 2023

The Supreme Court on Monday denied giving permission to a married woman who wanted to terminate her over 26-week pregnancy. According to the apex court, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Medical Board had found “no substantial foetal abnormalities” and a pre-term delivery carried the risk of being born with physical and mental deformities.

Reportedly, the woman had approached the top court seeking permission to terminate her pregnancy due to her inability to take care of the child due to post-partum psychosis and other health issues.

Continued: https://www.financialexpress.com/healthcare/news-healthcare/abortion-seekers-in-india-battle-social-stigma-poor-medical-facilities-despite-its-legal-status/3276184/

Abortion rights: Are women aware of legal status of MTP in India

As a result, their health issues are often ignored or dismissed, leading to inadequate or delayed treatment.

March 29, 2023

By Debanjana Choudhuri

Imagine being a woman in India, trapped in an unwanted pregnancy but clueless about your legal rights. Sadly, this is a common reality as health of women is viewed with indifference in our country. Millions of women, especially in rural India, lack access to accurate information on abortion and are oblivious to the legal status of Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP). This is a pressing issue that gravely affects the health and wellbeing of women.

Despite the legality of abortion, women’s reproductive rights are constantly besieged by regressive laws and societal stigmas. To make matters worse, many women are denied access to safe abortion services due to a lack of education and awareness on the subject. The patriarchal societal structure, which shames and stigmatizes women seeking abortion, is a significant obstacle to women’s rights. Let’s face it, the battle for abortion rights is not merely about reproductive healthcare, but also about ensuring gender equality and justice for women.

Continued: https://www.financialexpress.com/healthcare/wellness/abortion-rights-are-women-aware-of-legal-status-of-mtp-in-india/3024932/

29.03.2023

Commentary

Debanjana Choudhuri

Foundation for Reproductive Health Services

Guttmacher Institute

Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Bill 2021

Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act

MTP Act

patriachy

United Nations Population Fund

How the US scrapping of Roe v Wade threatens the global medical abortion revolution

Medical abortions are a global success story, and not one that will be easily derailed by the legislative backsliding in the US. Time, now, to close the access gaps, report Sally Howard and Geetanjali Krishna

BMJ 2022; 379
doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.o2349 (Published 19 October 2022)

Sally Howard, Geetanjali Krishna

In 2021, a 20 year old woman in Hyderabad, India, discovered she was pregnant.
A well educated, city girl, she was nevertheless afraid of the stigma attached
to unmarried pregnancy and did not know if she could legally terminate the
pregnancy. Around the same time, another young couple living together in
Bengaluru were in a similar predicament.

“Both women were not ready for a child but completely clueless about the
options they had, and the gestation period up to which abortion is legally
allowed in India,” says Anusha Pilli, a doctor who practises privately in
Hyderabad. Pilli helped both women to get medical abortions before their first
trimesters ended.

Continued: https://www.bmj.com/content/379/bmj.o2349

Amended Abortion Law Still Gives Doctors, Not Women, The Final Say

The amended abortion law has allowed termination of pregnancy up to 24 weeks but with a medical board's approval. Abortion is still not available on demand and a woman's agency is not recognised

By Akshita Nagpal
27 April, 2021

New Delhi: The terms for abortion have been liberalised in India after an amended law received the President's assent on March 25, 2021. But gender and reproductive rights activists are disappointed that the law still does not recognise abortion as a woman's choice that can be sought on-demand, as is the practice in 73 countries.

These are the key changes that the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP Amendment) Act, 2021, has brought in:

Continued: https://www.indiaspend.com/gendercheck/amended-abortion-law-still-gives-doctors-not-women-the-final-say-744747

India – How ‘Essential’ Abortion Services Are Inaccessible in the Lockdown

How ‘Essential’ Abortion Services Are Inaccessible in the Lockdown

Saakhi Chadha
Updated: 12/05/2020

A 19-year-old rape survivor in Mumbai found out she was pregnant right when India implemented its nationwide lockdown. She knew she had to get an abortion, but with no transport available and with many clinics shutting down their operations, she felt helpless and out of options.

“We went and picked her up and ensured she got the abortion at a public hospital. Forced sex is a critical issue in a lockdown and abortion services are required here and now,” Sangeeta Rege of the Centre for Enquiry into Health and Allied Themes (CEHAT), the NGO that intervened and arranged for the girl’s pass and travel, told Reuters.

Continued: https://fit.thequint.com/coronavirus/access-to-abortion-and-contraceptive-services-during-coronavirus-lockdown-in-india