As in the United Kingdom, however, women in India may at no point obtain an abortion at their request. Abortion is legal within the first 12 weeks of pregnancy when one registered medical practitioner determines in good faith that the pregnancy poses a threat to a woman's physical or mental health or that the fetus is likely to suffer a serious physical or mental disability. The law recognizes, among other things, contraceptive failure, rape, and the woman's actual or reasonably foreseeable environment as considerations affecting a woman's mental health. After 12 weeks, a woman may obtain an abortion if two registered medical practitioners agree that one of the above conditions has been met. When an immediate abortion is necessary to save a woman's life, the approval of a single registered practitioner is sufficient.
Abortion is legal at the woman's request through the eighteenth week of pregnancy.
Abortions after the eighteenth week of pregnancy are permitted for medical, socio-economic, and legal reasons when approved by the National Board of Health and Welfare. Approval for abortions after viability of the fetus will be granted only when the pregnancy gravely threatens the woman's life or health or in the case of severe fetal impairment. With approval by a hospital committee, a woman may have an abortion after 12 weeks on limited grounds, including socioeconomic reasons, rape, and likelihood of fetal impairment. After 12 weeks, abortion is permitted only when two physicians determine that the procedure is necessary to prevent a grave risk to woman's health or when there is a strong likelihood of fetal impairment. If the woman is married, her husband must consent to the termination of the pregnancy.