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This is a health issue, not a legal issue. There is need for expanding the gestational age from 20 to beyond that. “The second urgency is about frequent legal intervention that is common these days. This is imperative if we need to ensure that every one who needs it, even in most remote and hard to reach area can legally access safe abortions," said Kalpana Apte, Secretary General (CEO), Family Planning Association of India. MTP Act should therefore, be amended immediately to allow AYUSH doctors and Nurses to provide it. India is changing rapidly and people's needs and their lives are no longer similar to what was in 70s when this Act was passed. This is particularly challenging in rural areas where many a times a second practitioner is not available. For second trimester abortions, the consent of two medical practitioners is required. There is ambiguity around the provisions in the MTP Act for unmarried women to terminate pregnancy due to contraceptive failure since considerable stigma is attached to having a non-marital pregnancy or birth. However, in recent years there have been many cases of women seeking abortions beyond 20 weeks due to foetal abnormalities that in many cases can only be detected after 20 weeks as well as in cases of rape. The law states that abortions can only be provided up to 20 weeks. Currently, only trained MBBS doctors (of whom there is a dearth) can provide abortion services. Women activists claim that within the current MTP Act itself there are several limitations such as abortion is the not the right of woman in India and can only be provided at the discretion of a medical practitioner. Women health rights experts claim that it is now constrained by changing context. It protected women's right to life through its provisions. MTP Act was passed by the Parliament in 1972. This is not only a violation of their rights but uncalled for given the advancement in technology," said Muttreja. A decision to terminate a pregnancy, as provided by existing laws, is the right of the women and asking them to seek approval from a medical board stigmatises and further traumatises them. “This has led to delaying access to safe abortion care, subjecting women and girls to repeated examination by medical boards and at times denial of services. Majority of these pleas are due to foetal anomalies that are detected late and/or cases of sexual assault and rape, particularly of minors, where doctors are not willing to provide abortions, irrespective of gestational stage," said Poonam Muttreja, Executive Director of the Population Foundation of India. More women are now approaching the Courts to seek approval for abortion over 20 weeks, a provision that has been made available in a number of countries around the world. "The existing MTP Act, 1971, has not kept pace with the changing times, needs and advancements in medical science. In recent past there have been many PILs filed in courts seeking abortions. Other barriers to safe abortion include the implementation of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses Act, 2012 (POCSO Act), and the Pre-Conception Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act, 1994 (PCPNDT) as result of which doctors hesitate to provide abortion services to women and young girls. Abortion was legalised 50 years ago, yet 10 women die every year as a result of unsafe abortions – making unsafe abortions the third-leading cause of maternal deaths in the country. Why is it important to amend the MTP Act 1971?Īccording to a study published in the Lancet Global Health, 15.6 million abortions occurred in India in 2015 of which 78% of these were outside health facilities.