Pratigya Rights

Newsletter | September 2020 Edition

Dear Partner,

At a time when healthcare is burdened, our job of safeguarding sexual and reproductive health rights of people becomes more significant than ever.

With an unwavering commitment to our objectives, this month, we set out to achieve a plan that will significantly reduce the stress on pregnant persons seeking MTP services in India.

Find Your Nearest MTP Provider* With Our Help!

We are glad to share that we have launched our carefully curated and authenticated crowd-sourced database of 30,000+ MTP providers across the length and breadth of the country. This database will offer assistance to any user seeking information on MTP providers nearest to them.

We will keep adding to this database with the help of our partners and stakeholders. The database provides verified information and respects both the user’s and the provider’s confidentiality. The Secretariat will manage the verification process of every user to ensure the safety and security of data.

Find Your Nearest MTP Provider* With Our Help Image

*Abortion care services in India can be provided by a defined cadre of providers as specified by the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act, 1971. A registered medical practitioner means a medical practitioner who possesses any recognised medical qualification as defined in the MTP Act. All information will be protected by the Pratigya Campaign Secretariat.

** SMS functionality will be live by 9^th October, 2020.

Click here to access information

Assessing the Judiciary’s Role in Access to Safe Abortion - II

We recently launched the second part of the legal report on “Assessing the Judiciary’s Role in Access to Safe Abortion”. This report covers cases between 1^st May 2019 and 15^th August 2020 that were presented before the High Court of India seeking permission to legally terminate the pregnancy. Since the launch, the report has been covered in 50+ news stories across the country.

Key findings

A total of 243 cases were analysed during this period

84% cases were permitted by the court

74% of cases were filed post the 20-week gestation period, 29% of these cases were of rape/sexual abuse and 42% for foetal anomalies

Bombay high court witnessed 53% of the entire 243 cases

23% cases filed within the 20-week gestation period, of which 18% were related to rape and 6% to foetal anomalies

Conclusions

Last year, we witnessed an increasing number of cases reaching courts for permission. This lays emphasis on the necessity for the law to keep up with changing times.

It is imperative that access to abortion becomes legal rights for women at least at the first trimester

It is necessary that the opinion of the doctor, that the pregnant woman is consulting should be considered as the primary and the only one

Read Press Release

Read Full Report

#Voice4Choice - A Pratigya Campaign Initiative

One of the biggest hurdles we face is the unawareness in the public about the fact that abortion is a pregnant person’s choice, and right.

Our #Voice4Choice campaign attempts at establishing this notion and empowering people to exercise control over their bodies uninhibitedly. Our social media campaign, aims at promoting self-care and bodily autonomy.

September - The Month of Sexual & Reproductive Health and Rights

This month, we celebrated World Contraception Day and International Safe Abortion Day on our social channels by collaborating with partners.

We co-hosted a Tweetathon with Hidden Pockets on September 11, 2020, on the theme - 'The Impact of COVID-19 on Safe Abortion Services in India'

Chat With Hidden Pockets Collective

We also participated in a panel discussion with Love Matters India on September 25, 2020, around the theme - 'Challenges faced by Women on Accessing Safe Abortion during COVID-19'

Chat With Love Matters India

On World Contraception Day, we were part of a #TwitterChat with ICRW on September 26, 2020, on the theme - 'Contraceptives during COVID-19: Engaging Men as Equal Partners'

Chat With ICRW

New Partner Aboard!

Pratigya Campaign is thrilled to welcome its newest partner - Feminist Approach to Technology (FAT), a non-profit organisation that believes in empowering women by enabling them to access, use and create technology through a feminist rights‐based framework. They bring onboard their determination and commitment towards empowering individuals to speak up for their rights, question the existing structures of technology and seek to incorporate women as equal partners within it. Established in 2008, FAT primarily operates in Delhi and is now expanding in other states like Gujarat, Jharkhand and Bihar.