The Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Bill, 2021 ha been passed by the Lok Sabha. The 1971 Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act aims to reduce the maternal mortality ratio due to unsafe abortions in India. The amendments made a few significant updates to the 1971 Act. In this article we are going to discuss about the Salient features, provisions, problems and suggestions to improve the MTP Amendment Bill. But before we discuss these we have to know what is MTP? What is the significance of MTP? Let’s see.
Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) is the procedure performed for the premature termination of pregnancy. It helps in getting rid of unwanted pregnancies and such pregnancies which may be harmful or even fatal either to the mother or to the foetus or both. MTP plays a significant role in decreasing the human population. MTP is feasible only up to 9 weeks of pregnancy, and after that surgical termination takes over.
There are differing opinions with regard to allowing abortions. One opinion is that terminating a pregnancy is the choice of the pregnant woman, and a part of her reproductive rights. The other is that the state has an obligation to protect life, and hence should provide for the protection of the foetus. Across the world, countries set varying conditions and time limits for allowing abortions, based on foetal health, and risk to the pregnant woman.
Several Writ Petitions have been filed by women seeking permission to abort pregnancies beyond 20-weeks due to foetal abnormalities or rape. The Bill allows abortion after 24 weeks only in cases where a Medical Board diagnoses substantial foetal abnormalities. This implies that for a case requiring abortion due to rape, that exceeds 24-weeks, the only recourse remains through a Writ Petition.
The Bill does not specify the categories of women who may terminate pregnancies between 20-24 weeks and leaves it to be prescribed through Rules. It may be argued that such matters should be specified by Parliament and not delegated to the government.
The Act (and the Bill) require abortion to be performed only by doctors with specialisation in gynaecology or obstetrics. As there is a 75% shortage of such doctors in community health centers in rural areas, pregnant women may continue to find it difficult to access facilities for safe abortions.
Because of a lack of development in medical technology, the 1971 Act prescribes the 12-week limit. As it is not safe for pregnant women to abort after 12-weeks. But with the advancement of medical technology, it is safe to abort at any stage during their gestation. So the government has to remove the gestation limit in the Amendment.
Fundamental change in mindset is the need of the hour. Until women are seen as an agent of reproduction, nothing will change in reality. So, the improvement of the MTP Amendment is not a holistic one. Instead, it is a minor update.
