Laws in India

The Constitution of India provides fundamental protections for all Indians. Most crucially, the constitution protects the Right to Life and a number of derivative rights, including the right to health and the right to be free from cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. The Government of India has developed a number of specific laws to address reproductive rights issues including child marriage, medical termination of pregnancy and sex selection.
To correct fundamental rights violations and to improve the reproductive rights situation in India, the government of India has developed a number of schemes to improve healthcare, to increase institutional deliveries, and to encourage healthy behaviour. Finally, India is a party to a number of international human rights conventions that obligate the government to protect, promote, respect and fulfill reproductive rights.


This section provides a brief overview of existing legal protections in India.

Laws

The Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969

Articles

“The child shall be registered immediately after birth and shall have the right from birth to a name, the right to acquire a nationality and. as far as possible, the right to know and be cared for by his or her parents”  Article 7, ....
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Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act 1994

Articles

The Government of India enacted this law to respond to the country’s disproportionate sex ratio. First, the Act prohibits genetic laboratories from undertaking any technique that facilitates or causes sex determination (including sperm sorting). Secondly, the Act regulates prenatal diagnostic techniques including ultrasonography to determine the sex of the ....
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Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act (1971)

Articles

The Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act (MTP Act) allows qualified doctors to perform abortions for women in clinics or hospitals. The MTP Act allows abortions for women in specific situations: Women whose physical or mental health is endangered by pregnancy; Women who will give birth to a handicapped or ....
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