Amniocentesis for sex determination is banned in our country. Is this ban necessary? Comment.

(i) Reproductive health refers to the healthy reproductive organs with normal functions.

(ii) India was amongst the first countries in the world to initiate action plans and programmes at a national level to attain total reproductive health as a social goal.

(iii) The national ‘family planning program’ was launched in India as early as $1951$.

(iv) The success of family planning greatly depends on women and their status.

(v) Counselling, and creating awareness among people about reproductive organs, adolescence and associated changes, safe and hygienic sexual practices, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) including AIDS, etc., is the primary step towards reproductive health.

(vi) Introduction of sex education in schools should be encouraged to provide right information to the young.

(vii) Providing medical facilities and care to the problems like menstrual irregularities, pregnancy related aspects, delivery, medical termination of pregnancy, STDs, birth control, infertility, postnatal child and maternal management is another important aspect of the Reproductive and Child Health Care programmes.

(viii) An overall improvement in reproductive health has taken place in India as indicated by reduced maternal and infant mortality rates, early detection and cure of STDs, assistance to infertile couples, etc.

2. Population Explosion:

(i) The increased medical facilities along with better modern living conditions had promoted a phenomenal growth of population, now more appropriately termed as “population explosion”.

(ii) Demography is the study of human populations and the process through which populations change.

(iii) Population explosion is a global phenomenon and its consequences can be seen on the surface and in the atmosphere of the Earth.

(iv) Census is the official process of counting the number of people in a country, and it provides information on size, distribution and socio-economic, demographic and other characteristics of the country’s population.

(v) “Contraception” refers specifically to mechanisms that are intended to reduce the likelihood of a sperm fertilising the egg.

3. Birth Control:

(i) Contraceptive methods are commonly used to prevent unwanted pregnancies.

(ii) Various contraceptive options are available now such as natural, barrier, IUDs, pills, injectables, implants and surgical methods.

(iii) In India, Medical Termination of Pregnancy or abortion was legalised through “Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act” of $1971$.

4. Sexually Transmitted Diseases:

(i) Diseases or infections which are transmitted through sexual intercourse are collectively called sexually transmitted diseases (STD).

(ii) Some common STDs are gonorrhoea, syphilis, genital herpes, genital warts, trichomoniasis, hepatitis-B, AIDS, etc.

(iii) Pelvic Inflammatory Diseases (PIDs), still birth, infertility are some of the complications of STD.

(iv) Prevention or early detection and cure of STDs are given prime consideration under the reproductive health-care programmes.

(v) Avoiding sexual intercourse with unknown/multiple partners, use of condoms during coitus are some of the simple precautions to avoid contracting STDs.

5. Infertility:

(i) Inability to conceive or produce children even after $2$ years of unprotected sexual cohabitation is called infertility.

(ii) Assisted reproductive technology (ART) uses special methods to help infertile couples to achieve pregnancy by artificial or partially artificial means.

(iii) In vitro fertilisation is ideal for women who have not been able to become pregnant through regular unprotected intercourse.

(iv) In vitro fertilisation followed by transfer of embryo into the female genital tract is one such method and is commonly known as the ‘Test Tube Baby’ programme.

(v) Intrauterine insemination is a procedure designed to place sperm directly into a woman’s uterus through artificial means.

(vi) A surrogate is a woman who agrees to become pregnant using the man’s sperm and her own egg.

(vii) Amniocentesis is performed to look for certain types of birth defects, such as Down syndrome, a chromosomal abnormality.