Overview

Abortion laws in India can be found under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act, enacted in the country in 1971. Pregnancies not exceeding 12 weeks may be terminated based on a single opinion from a doctor formed in good faith, and pregnancies between 12 to 20 weeks require the opinion of two doctors for an abortion to be authorized. While the MTP does not allow pregnancy terminations after 20 weeks, there have been recent proposals in October 2014 for the Indian Parliament to allow for abortions up until 24 weeks of pregnancy. Despite abortion being legal in India, an estimated two-thirds of abortions performed in the country are unsafe, performed illegally at homes and/or by midwives. The annual death toll of women from abortions is 4,600. Better and safer access has yet to be universalized in the country, especially for women in rural Indian. In 2010, the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare of India designed a bill to regulate assisted reproductive technology (ART). However, the bill continues to be tabled in Parliament each year. Commercial surrogacy in India is legal and enforceable through contracts. In 2012, a study supported by the UN estimated that the surrogacy business in India generates more than $400 million a year and over 3,000 fertility clinics across India exist. The Indian Council for Medical Research has published guidelines regarding ART in 2005, which discuss the importance and need for surrogacy. The Supreme Court of India had ruled in 2011 that passive euthanasia is permissible by means of the withdrawal of life support to patients in a permanent vegetative state. The decision came from a verdict made as a result of a case involving Aruna Shanaug, who has been in a vegetative state for 37 years in an Indian hospital. Recently, in December 2014, the Indian government endorsed and re-validated the passive euthanasia judgment. Active euthanasia, along with advanced directives, is illegal. India is very progressive in terms of stem cell research with research funded and supported in both the public and private sectors. Guidelines for stem-cell research are created by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) and the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR). Under the guidelines, stem cell therapy is still prohibited despite the country’s fairly liberal stance on stem-cell research. The use of human pre-embryos for experimental purposes is legal, along with the derivation of new hESC lines from SCNT and supernumerary IVF embryos. FURTHER READINGS http://health.wusf.usf.edu/post/abortion-india-legal-yet-women-are-still-dying http://irssh.com/yahoo_site_admin/assets/docs/18_IRSSH-392-V4N1.321102751.pdf http://www.businessinsider.in/Stem-CellResearch-In-India-Surges-Ahead/articleshow/40278445.cms
Aabortion

Abortion

85 pts out of 100 / 100,00% complete

85 pts

Abortion and contraception allow women to express their freedom of reproduction by exercising their right of self-determination over their bodies.


Measurement questions

Is abortion lawful to protect woman's life?

Yes

Is abortion lawful to protect woman's physical health?

Yes

Is abortion lawful to protect woman's mental health?

Yes

Is abortion lawful in the event the woman was raped?

Yes

Is abortion lawful in the event of fetal defects?

Yes

Does the law mandate that an abortion is performed at the mere request of a pregnant woman?

No

Is RU-486 (Mifepristone) approved or registered for use?

Yes and it is available with prescription

Are emergency contraception drugs lawfully available?

Yes, over the counter

Are family planning services provided through government-run programs and facilities?

Yes, directly

Is spousal notification/permission required?

No

Assisted reproduction

Assisted Reproduction

92 pts out of 100 / 100,00% complete

92 pts

Assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs) are the methods used to achieve pregnancy by artificial or partially artificial means. Access to assisted reproduction concerns our ability to expand our right to health by offering us access to treatment to overcome infertility.


Measurement questions

Is preimplantation genetic diagnosis permissible?

Yes with no restrictions

Is oocyte cryopreservation permissible?

Yes

Is embryo cryopreservation permissible for reproductive purposes?

Yes

Is sperm donation permissible?

Yes

Is oocyte donation permissible?

Yes

Are IVF surrogacy agreements enforceable?

Yes, commercial and not

Marital status requirements?

No

Do same-sex couples have access to ART?

Yes

Do single women have access to ART?

Yes

Are there any limits on the number of pre-embryos that can be transferred?

Yes

End Off Life

End of life

13 pts out of 100 / 100,00% complete

13 pts

End of life decisions concern our ability to make choices concerning the end of our lives and take of the form of refusal of life sustaining treatment, being help in committing suicide, choosing euthanasia, and make choices that must be upheld even when the person becomes unconscious. As Young (2010) noted, "People have an interest in making important decisions about their lives in accordance with their own conception of how they want their lives to go."


Measurement questions

Is passive euthanasia lawful?

Unclear because of conflicting/insufficient authority

Is active euthanasia lawful?

Legally prohibited

Is physician-assisted suicide lawful?

Legally prohibited

Are advance directives (AD) enforceable?

No

Is a physician required to respect a patient's refusal of life-sustaining treatment?

Never

Research With Embryo

Research with embryos

0 pts out of 100 / 0,00% complete

0 pts

Research with embryos and pre-embryos as well as therapeutic cloning concerns scientists’ freedom to investigate human biology as well as patients’ freedom to access regenerative medicine treatments that may be developed as a result of research with human embryonic stem cells. Since the early 2000s, research with embryos has been at the center of an often-polarized debate about the nature and scope of scientific freedom.


Measurement questions

Is basic research using germline modification in human embryos/gametes permitted?

Is pre-clinical research using germline modification technologies in animals permitted?

Is clinical research using germline modification technologies in humans permitted?

Are clinical applications of research using germline modification technologies (i.e., to initiate a pregnancy with edited embryos or with edited gametes) permitted?

GM Crops

GM Crops

65 pts out of 100 / 100,00% complete

65 pts

GM crops have contributed significantly to modern agriculture. Plant breeding using genetic modification techniques has led to improving crops in more targeted ways than classical breeding techniques. GM crops acquire desirable characteristics, including pest and herbicide resistance, enhanced robustness against diseases, drought or water tolerance, and healthier profiles that can enhance nutrition.


Measurement questions

Is research on GMOs permitted in the laboratories?

Yes

Is notification to start research on GMOs in laboratories required?

Yes

Is research on GMOs frequent?

No

Are GM crop field trials (the limited release into the environment for research purposes) permitted?

Yes

Is authorization to start a GM crop field trial required?

Yes/prohibited

Are GM crop field trials frequent?

Yes

Is cultivation of GM crops (for commercial purposes) in open field permitted?

Yes

Is authorization to start open field cultivation of GM crops required?

Yes/prohibited

Is open field cultivation of GM crops frequent?

No/prohibited

Can GM crop commodities harvested in other countries be imported?

Yes

Is authorization to import GM crop commodities required?

Yes/prohibited

Is the import of GM crop commoties frequent?

No/prohibited

Right To Science Indicators

Right To Science Indicators


Measurement questions

- Access to benefits

What is the total general government expenditure on education?

14.05

What is the expenditure on tertiary as % of government expenditure on education?

28.53

What is the the percentage of population ages 25 and over that attained or completed a doctoral degree or equivalent?

What is the percentage of population that uses the Internet?

29.55

What is the quality of math and science education on a scale from 1 to 7 being "excellent"?

4.6

To what extent is the Internet used in schools for learning purposes?

4.6

What is the scientific literacy of 15-year-old students as measured by the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA)(mean score)?

- Opportunities to participate

Does the law mandate nondiscrimination based on gender in hiring?

Yes

What is the percentage of females employed with advanced degrees out of total employed?

- Enabling environment

How many scientific and technical journal articles are published each year in physics, biology, chemistry, mathematics, clinical medicine, biomedical research, engineering and technology, and earth and space sciences?

110319.6

What is the percentage of GDP allocated to Research and Development?

0.63

How may published articles have received at least H citations in the period 1996–2014?

37.1

What is the quality of scientific research institutions?

4.7

To what extent do business and universities collaborate on research and development (R&D)?

4.4

What is the average university ranking score of countries based on their top 3 universities?

49

To what extent are scientists and engineers available?

4.6

How many professionals are employed as researchers?

How many professionals are employed by government as researchers?

- International cooperation

To what extent are talented people attracted from abroad?

4.7

Recent News about India

Is Passive Euthanasia Finally Going to Be a Legal Reality in India?

By MINAKSHI BISWAS    ‘Euthanasia’ and ‘end of life care’ are two contradictory subjects. Euthanasia is regarded as the only viable option when all end of life care mechanisms fall short of a better life for an individual who is terminally ill or in a vegetable-like state. Although a law on euthanasia is a prerequisite for people suffering

Tragic case prompts India to adopt a law permitting ‘passive’ euthanasia

By Rama Lakshmi NEW DELHI — Aruna Shanbaug was working as a nurse in Mumbai when she was brutally raped and assaulted by a co-worker — an attack that left her in a vegetative state for the past four decades. Her case inspired a best-selling book and sparked a heated debate about euthanasia in India.

Government set to allow abortions till 24 weeks

Malathy Iyer   MUMBAI: The Indian government has proposed an increase in the abortion limit from the present 20 weeks to 24 weeks and even beyond in case of fetal abnormality. A draft Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment),Bill 2014 was put up on the ministry of health website on October 29. The draft says that