Disposal of Fetal Remains and Post-Abortion Provisions

Abstract

Abortion is considered as a matter of growing concern in recent times, demanding answers on various issues in the arena of reproductive rights of women. Till 1971, Abortion laws were governed vide Sections 312 to 316 of the Indian Penal Code , 1860 however being restrictive in nature was replaced by “The Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act,1971” which envisaged a more liberal approach towards the same.  Despite of legalizing abortion and having progressive legislations in that regard, India still witnesses a large number of unsafe abortions. The disposal of fetus is another crucial area which explicitly gets highlighted during discussion on this issue. The disposal of foetus is governed by Biomedical Waste Management Rules, 2016. Though the act made remarkable changes in the area, still failed to address the issue of Post Abortion disposal of fetus and Post Abortion Parental Consent raising many ethical issues. The Present Article mainly focuses its concern on the abovementioned aspects. The Article also highlights the causes and effects of Unsafe abortion with the required statistical data. It also revolves around certain aspects of Bio Medical Waste and Biomedical Management Rules with regard to the disposal of foetus. The Article further highlights the silence of the act on the issue of parental autonomy by making cross country comparison. The authors in the end of the article suggest measures which can be adopted to eradicate these issues.