These two things that matters most in this business if you want to be lambi race ka ghoda. For script selection, I have a 4 out of 7 ratio which is a pretty good ratio. I am happy that my instinct is leading me in the correct direction.Don’t you think its only people within the industry and trade who compare an actor’s last film whereas audience don’t really think about a last hit or flop Yes of course! It’s only in the writing and the speaking there is a comparative study that this actor’s film worked and the other one didn’t. It’s not even your own career, it is your career compared to another actor’s career. You are not treated as an individual but a commodity. I have always said that you have to nurture new comers who are making unique choices. But what happens is everyone is out there to compare your films and say this one is not good enough, that one is bad. This keeps changing every Friday. You have to find consistency in the way you look at people when you write. We are pitted against each other like race horses. The race is very long and it’s still going on. The Khans are still running the race. The race is never ending but an actor has to find his own groove and his rhythm, find his audience. But that can happen only when people stop comparing you like chana. Yes, but I do agree the audience doesn’t care and they will not stop watching you after one flop. Otherwise Khatron Ke Khiladi also wouldn’t have got the kind of reaction it got. Television is a very ruthless medium and straight up you know whether you have worked or not. I was quietly confident about my ability. 

If I get shaken up by one flop then I will have to leave the profession. You become star on the basis of how you deal with failures.But aren’t you sensitive enough to at least feel the jolt See, if you don’t feel the jolt then there is something wrong with you. (Laughs) Sometimes you can pre-empt a film on how it will do so you are numb to it. Sometimes you are surprised by the negative reactions it gets. Sometimes you are prepared for it. Sometimes you watch the film and you feel the script was better than the film. Sometimes the film is better than the script. I saw Tevar, I won’t say it’s an outstanding film but I won’t say it’s a bad film. Any other given day and the film would have done another 15-20 cr easily. Going by the wave of mass cinemas and how they work, unfortunately the release date was such that mass cinema had died. The genre had just shut down for the audience and we were the last film. The hero heroine ( Arjun-Sonakshi) had the mass ability but it did jolt me because it was also my home production. Now may be a year and a half later Baaghi has come and it’s in the same space.

You think the media in itself gets lost in this game of comparing actors Somewhere I think the media has to connect with the audience a little bit more and keep them in mind. I think each film should be treated individually as isolation.Do you see a contrasting vision of what you read in media and what the audiences are thinking Yes, sometimes. But they are fair most of the time. I am not saying media ko kuch pata nahi. Certain sections are pretty accurate. But there are some sections who write without having done their research. Its like, someone once wrote Gunday is a flop. Now weather you like the film or not, the film did 75 cr + so it cannot be a flop. 

I can understand you not liking the film but you can’t change the status of the audiences love for the film. That is when I find it silly. A lot of people make me feel that Finding Fanny didn’t do well. It wasn’t a trade box office blockbuster but where does an English film does Rs 30 cr here You should give credit that we did an experimental film and you can’t even count Finding Fanny in the hit and flop thing. Some films are not about hit and flop but about ‘even this is made in India’. Every film is not going to be 2 States.Then it must be very hard to understand how to keep up with what the audiences need It is. But there are your instincts and impulse while shooting the film which tells you that it is ending in a good space. See if you like the material of the director and it is similar to what it is being made into, you get to know. 

Actors come in thinking the director will pull it off. So many times good scripts are not executed well. Tevar I had estimated it would do around 60 cr and that was the only time I went wrong. Otherwise for all my other films I was pretty accurate.What’s the stupidest thing people think about actors Lot of people feel actors are arrogant and difficult to talk to. But when they meet us they tell us aap toh normal ho. Lot of people feel that we don’t have emotions and we are not affected by people passing by.Being a producers son, want to know your insight on the economics of the industry You think the movies off late are not doing the numbers they are expected to achieve Like do you think Ki and Ka, which did so well, could have gone another extra mile Or even a Kapoor and Sons But Kapoor and Sons was a very profitable venture. It was made around 37 cr I think, the film did 65 cr in India.But despite a good film, do you think it has still not achieved its full potential No, see film have ranges. 

 Every film cannot be beyond what its range is. Like Neerja has over performed if you look at it. Like Piku last year also over performed. That is when there is a genuine love like madness for a film. Ek wave aati hai, that the film is mind blowing. Woh apne potentional se jyada kar jaati hai. When a Piku is expected to do 55-60 cr and does 80cr that is the love of the audience beyond. But usse jyada kuch filmon ke range nahi hoti. Also you have to understand that the audiences are very different. City audiences are very different from the second tier city audience. Ki and Ka is made for a certain audience and we can’t play it in a single screen. Kapoor and Sons, Neerja you can’t play at a single screen. Airlift, even if it’s Akshay you can only play it in certain single screens. But despite that Airlift does 120 cr which is a huge number. Yes, the trend last year was not good. 

There were some unfortunate disappointments and every year has that.Go on It is also the ticket prices have become expensive. Less people step out to watch films. It’s only like if they hear good things they will go and see the film. Today average doesn’t cut it. After a month I will watch it on video on demand or on the internet. Or some channel will play it on satellite. Time pass doesn’t cut it so you have to give more than that to the audience.Sometimes actors also charge so high and the economics of the film go wrong making the recovery a big task For the past few years I can vouch for the fact that the younger generation has not done a film which is very front-loaded. I think we are also very conservative in our approach. 

I treat every film individually and things take time to change. Content is getting better by the day. Films don’t do so well in India because we have a diverse audience. Not every film will connect with everybody. There are few pan India films that come out every year. The Urban middle class is coming to multiplex more often. That is where the main money is in the theatres. If just by pure multiplex numbers, if Ki & Ka, Kapoor and Sons and Neerja have done this much, imagine the potential if you continue working this way. In the next 5 years, multiplex will even command better numbers.In a movie crazy country like India, we have such limited screens (around 5000 screens) Like China has twice the number of screens See, the pay structure of China is very different. People are making lot more money to watch a film there. In India, not everybody is making that kind of money. They have to feed their families. India, the rural states, we have very few theatres. 

I don’t think we have more than 5000 screens which are not enough to feed the population. Hardly 1 percent of the population goes to see the film. That is primarily because of ticket pricing. Today, there are so many other avenues of entertainment now. People have grown up watching films for 30 and 50 rs. Recessions or not, picture toh utne ki he hoti thi. Balcony 50, stall was 25-30 rs. Slowly it went up to 100 rs which was a lot. They are used to being entertained at a certain price. You buy popcorn and samosas now and half your salary is gone. Going to multiplex today can cost a family of 4 straight 4000 rs. So now instead of watching 4 movies a month, they are just watching 1. That has been the biggest difference.

For an actor to be well informed about the current trends or identify what the audience wants, do you have friends with whom you these long discussions We are all aware of who is making what as we are part of the industry. We do lose a little bit of connect as we don’t go to the theatres to see our film. That’s the big difference and we need to go more often. But one needs to be open minded, travel the country, meet people, hear them, what they like and what they are talking about. 

That is what keeps me corrected. I always pay attention to what age group is reacting to.Do you randomly take off on unplanned trips Does your profession give you that window Not as much as I should. Not in India because the problem is that you take off abroad, you need more time. You can’t just take off for 2-3 days. You never have that time to take off for 10-15 days in a stretch. You get a weekend off and you want to sleep it off. But last year I went to Goa alone for a few days. May be this year after I finish Half Girlfriend I will try and do it again.Varun, Alia, Sidharth have an option to pitch themselves for any scripts that come to Dharma Productions. At YRF (they manage Arjun’s career), do you have that option I think in YRF what happens that the director decides with Adi which actor he wants and then you are offered the film. 

You are allowed to decide if you want to do it or not. That’s how it functions for me from Day 1 at YRF. There is no first right to refusal that I am better for this. I don’t go and sit with Adi and pitch myself. He is the one who has made me and he knows my skills. I am sure in Dharma, it must be in a different way and here it is in a different way., are truly liberal, allowing for abortion any time during the pregnancy on request of the woman — for social reasons and foetal abnormalities. 52 per cent, including inter alia France, the UK, Austria, Ethiopia, Italy, Spain, Iceland, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland and even our neighbouring country Nepal, allow for termination beyond 20 weeks on diagnosis of foetal abnormalities.The proposed amendments also make provisions for contraceptive failure to apply to all women and men, removing the marriage criterion that is otherwise not applicable to any other condition for termination Travel Vacuum Space Bag under law. Laws in 23 countries, including countries as diverse as Canada, Germany, Vietnam, Denmark, Ghana and Zambia etc.The then progressive law has today lost its relevance in light of recent technological advancements. Another critical factor to be aware of is the significant improvement in diagnostic techniques for determining foetal abnormalities incompatible with life.

The proposed amendments to the MTP Act in 2014 included, one, a proposal to expand the provider base and allow AYUSH providers, nurses and ANMs to conduct early terminations after training, and, two, increasing the gestation limit from 20 to 24 weeks for vulnerable categories of women further to a recommendation from the National Commission for Women. For more information visit www. There is an urgent need to identify gaps in ensuring availability of comprehensive abortion care (CAC) services for women and preventing deaths and disabilities.org). Women are owners of their bodies as well as caretakers of their families.(The author is executive director of Ipas Development Foundation, an NGO that has been working closely with the government at the national and state levels for over a decade to increase women’s access to comprehensive abortion care with the purpose of reducing deaths and disabilities faced by women.Globally: 56 mn abortions are done every year.Recent cases in the Supreme Court have brought out the debate on diagnosis of foetal abnormalities and women’s agency to exercise their reproductive rights for termination of pregnancy.India: 11.Women’s groups have strongly argued for reducing regulation of pregnancy outcomes for women and allowing women to be the judge for the course of their pregnancy.ipasdevelopmentfoundation. India was one of the 15 countries that passed a liberal abortion law in 1971.

These technologies do not require services of specialist doctors, and world over there is a trend now towards task-shifting for safe abortion to other cadres of healthcare providers. But, women of this country are still waiting for the legislature to take a decision, making it a reality.Another significant feature of the proposed amendments is that no upper gestation limit for termination of pregnancy would apply in case of diagnosed foetal abnormalities incompatible with life.Under Section 5 of the law, upper gestation limit of 20 weeks does not apply when it is necessary to conduct terminations any time during the pregnancy to save the woman’s life.Case studiesMarch 2017: The Supreme Court rejected a plea made by a 37-year-old woman from Maharashtra to terminate her 26-week-old foetus on the ground that it suffered from Down’s syndrome after a medical board advised it. Chief among these is the lack of access to safe abortion services, apart from a general lack of awareness among women, particularly those in rural and remote areas of the country.There is a need to also focus on strengthening programme implementation strategies and community level action on abortion.It is estimated that 11.5 million abortions take place in India every year, a significant proportion of the global annual figure of 56 million. The Supreme Court has recently intervened in cases where women have sought abortion because the foetus is deformed, triggering demands to allow women to determine the course of their pregnancies. This is a matter of concern in modern times, when, as the WHO states, "When performed by a skilled provider using correct medical techniques and drugs, and under hygienic conditions, induced abortion is a very safe medical procedure”. 

The decision to continue a pregnancy (or not) is very personal and women have their reasons for the same. The court held that abortion of the foetus was only permissible within 20 weeks. Research shows that even today, less than 20 per cent of women are aware that abortion is legal in India. India was one of the 15 countries that passed a liberal abortion law in 1971. Newer and safer technologies that make abortion a very safe out-patient medical procedure that can be completed using manual vacuum aspiration (MVA) or a combination of prescription drugs (medical abortion) are considered to be the gold standard today. Unsafe abortion is the third biggest cause of maternal deaths in India. In India, unsafe abortion is the third biggest cause of maternal deaths. As there was no risk to the life of the pregnant woman, the court denied the petitioners the right to abort the foetus. 

This is in line with international standards and global recommendations.Abortion has been legal in India by virtue of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act, passed in 1971, which allows for termination of pregnancy up to 20 weeks of gestation for a broad range of conditions including when continuation of pregnancy is a risk to her physical or mental health, if pregnancy is a result of rape or incest, foetal abnormality, or failure of contraceptive method used by a married woman or her husband.Unsafe abortion is the third biggest cause of maternal deaths in India20% women are aware that abortion is legal in India.When this law was passed over four decades ago, the only available technology for termination of pregnancies was dilatation and curettage (D&C) — now an outdated invasive medical procedure — that required the use of anaesthesia for removing products of conception using a metal curette.If we look at abortion laws in the rest of the world, 60 countries have laws prescribing gestational limits.

This proposal underscored additional challenges faced by some categories of women like survivors of rape and incest, very young women, women with disabilities etc. Today, it must amend the law and bring it in line with international standards and global recommendations. While arguing very strongly for provisions for managing pregnancies with confirmed foetal abnormalities incompatible with life, it needs to be understood that less than two per cent of women experience such a situation in their pregnancy. The decision about when to have children, the number of children and how to care for them, is theirs and theirs alone.We need to address these social barriers and strengthen women’s access to safe abortion services, and hold ourselves accountable for the needless deaths and disabilities faced by women in a liberal legal environment. Today, the government must bring it in line with international standards and reflect both medical advances and the rights of women over their own bodies. Recent court cases reiterate the need for increasing the gestation limit to 24 weeks for such and more vulnerable categories of women. The stigma around abortion takes precedence over the law and becomes a compelling factor leading women to choose unsafe pathways for termination of pregnancy when they should have access to the same, free-of-cost, from public health facilities.India was one of the 15 countries that passed a liberal abortion law in 1971.5 mn abortions take place every year.July 2009: The Supreme Court allowed a mentally-challenged rape victim who doctors said had a maximum IQ of a nine-year-old to give birth to her baby, saying nature will "take care” of the orphan mother and child.In 2008, the Bombay HC denied a woman, whose foetus had been diagnosed with a congenital heart defect, permission to abort her 26-week foetus. The Supreme Court held that Down’s Syndrome is not a life-threatening condition, and that there is no physical risk to the mother from the pregnancy. The safety provisions in the law, including provider definition, training requirement, opinion etc, were defined keeping women’s safety in light of this technology, are truly liberal, allowing for abortion any time during the pregnancy on request of the woman — for social reasons and foetal abnormalities. 52 per cent, including inter alia France, the UK, Austria, Ethiopia, Italy, Spain, Iceland, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland and even our neighbouring country Nepal, allow for termination beyond 20 weeks on diagnosis of foetal abnormalities.The proposed amendments also make provisions for contraceptive failure to apply to all women and men, removing the marriage criterion that is otherwise not applicable to any other condition for termination Travel Vacuum Space Bag under law. Laws in 23 countries, including countries as diverse as Canada, Germany, Vietnam, Denmark, Ghana and Zambia etc.The then progressive law has today lost its relevance in light of recent technological advancements. 

Another critical factor to be aware of is the significant improvement in diagnostic techniques for determining foetal abnormalities incompatible with life.The proposed amendments to the MTP Act in 2014 included, one, a proposal to expand the provider base and allow AYUSH providers, nurses and ANMs to conduct early terminations after training, and, two, increasing the gestation limit from 20 to 24 weeks for vulnerable categories of women further to a recommendation from the National Commission for Women. For more information visit www. There is an urgent need to identify gaps in ensuring availability of comprehensive abortion care (CAC) services for women and preventing deaths and disabilities.org). Women are owners of their bodies as well as caretakers of their families.(The author is executive director of Ipas Development Foundation, an NGO that has been working closely with the government at the national and state levels for over a decade to increase women’s access to comprehensive abortion care with the purpose of reducing deaths and disabilities faced by women.Globally: 56 mn abortions are done every year.Recent cases in the Supreme Court have brought out the debate on diagnosis of foetal abnormalities and women’s agency to exercise their reproductive rights for termination of pregnancy.India: 11.Women’s groups have strongly argued for reducing regulation of pregnancy outcomes for women and allowing women to be the judge for the course of their pregnancy.ipasdevelopmentfoundation. India was one of the 15 countries that passed a liberal abortion law in 1971.These technologies do not require services of specialist doctors, and world over there is a trend now towards task-shifting for safe abortion to other cadres of healthcare providers. But, women of this country are still waiting for the legislature to take a decision, making it a reality.Another significant feature of the proposed amendments is that no upper gestation limit for termination of pregnancy would apply in case of diagnosed foetal abnormalities incompatible with life.Under Section 5 of the law, upper gestation limit of 20 weeks does not apply when it is necessary to conduct terminations any time during the pregnancy to save the woman’s life.Case studiesMarch 2017: The Supreme Court rejected a plea made by a 37-year-old woman from Maharashtra to terminate her 26-week-old foetus on the ground that it suffered from Down’s syndrome after a medical board advised it. Chief among these is the lack of access to safe abortion services, apart from a general lack of awareness among women, particularly those in rural and remote areas of the country.There is a need to also focus on strengthening programme implementation strategies and community level action on abortion.

It is estimated that 11.5 million abortions take place in India every year, a significant proportion of the global annual figure of 56 million. The Supreme Court has recently intervened in cases where women have sought abortion because the foetus is deformed, triggering demands to allow women to determine the course of their pregnancies. This is a matter of concern in modern times, when, as the WHO states, "When performed by a skilled provider using correct medical techniques and drugs, and under hygienic conditions, induced abortion is a very safe medical procedure”. The decision to continue a pregnancy (or not) is very personal and women have their reasons for the same. The court held that abortion of the foetus was only permissible within 20 weeks. Research shows that even today, less than 20 per cent of women are aware that abortion is legal in India. India was one of the 15 countries that passed a liberal abortion law in 1971. Newer and safer technologies that make abortion a very safe out-patient medical procedure that can be completed using manual vacuum aspiration (MVA) or a combination of prescription drugs (medical abortion) are considered to be the gold standard today. 

Unsafe abortion is the third biggest cause of maternal deaths in India. In India, unsafe abortion is the third biggest cause of maternal deaths. As there was no risk to the life of the pregnant woman, the court denied the petitioners the right to abort the foetus. This is in line with international standards and global recommendations.Abortion has been legal in India by virtue of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act, passed in 1971, which allows for termination of pregnancy up to 20 weeks of gestation for a broad range of conditions including when continuation of pregnancy is a risk to her physical or mental health, if pregnancy is a result of rape or incest, foetal abnormality, or failure of contraceptive method used by a married woman or her husband.Unsafe abortion is the third biggest cause of maternal deaths in India20% women are aware that abortion is legal in India.When this law was passed over four decades ago, the only available technology for termination of pregnancies was dilatation and curettage (D&C) — now an outdated invasive medical procedure — that required the use of anaesthesia for removing products of conception using a metal curette.If we look at abortion laws in the rest of the world, 60 countries have laws prescribing gestational limits.This proposal underscored additional challenges faced by some categories of women like survivors of rape and incest, very young women, women with disabilities etc. Today, it must amend the law and bring it in line with international standards and global recommendations. 

While arguing very strongly for provisions for managing pregnancies with confirmed foetal abnormalities incompatible with life, it needs to be understood that less than two per cent of women experience such a situation in their pregnancy. The decision about when to have children, the number of children and how to care for them, is theirs and theirs alone.We need to address these social barriers and strengthen women’s access to safe abortion services, and hold ourselves accountable for the needless deaths and disabilities faced by women in a liberal legal environment. Today, the government must bring it in line with international standards and reflect both medical advances and the rights of women over their own bodies. Recent court cases reiterate the need for increasing the gestation limit to 24 weeks for such and more vulnerable categories of women. The stigma around abortion takes precedence over the law and becomes a compelling factor leading women to choose unsafe pathways for termination of pregnancy when they should have access to the same, free-of-cost, from public health facilities.India was one of the 15 countries that passed a liberal abortion law in 1971.5 mn abortions take place every year.July 2009: The Supreme Court allowed a mentally-challenged rape victim who doctors said had a maximum IQ of a nine-year-old to give birth to her baby, saying nature will "take care” of the orphan mother and child.In 2008, the Bombay HC denied a woman, whose foetus had been diagnosed with a congenital heart defect, permission to abort her 26-week foetus. The Supreme Court held that Down’s Syndrome is not a life-threatening condition, and that there is no physical risk to the mother from the pregnancy. 

The safety provisions in the law, including provider definition, training requirement, opinion etc, were defined keeping women’s safety in light of this technology, are truly liberal, allowing for abortion any time during the pregnancy on request of the woman — for social reasons and foetal abnormalities. 52 per cent, including inter alia France, the UK, Austria, Ethiopia, Italy, Spain, Iceland, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland and even our neighbouring country Nepal, allow for termination beyond 20 weeks on diagnosis of foetal abnormalities.The proposed amendments also make provisions for contraceptive failure to apply to all women and men, removing the marriage criterion that is otherwise not applicable to any other condition for termination Travel Vacuum Space Bag under law. Laws in 23 countries, including countries as diverse as Canada, Germany, Vietnam, Denmark, Ghana and Zambia etc.The then progressive law has today lost its relevance in light of recent technological advancements. Another critical factor to be aware of is the significant improvement in diagnostic techniques for determining foetal abnormalities incompatible with life.The proposed amendments to the MTP Act in 2014 included, one, a proposal to expand the provider base and allow AYUSH providers, nurses and ANMs to conduct early terminations after training, and, two, increasing the gestation limit from 20 to 24 weeks for vulnerable categories of women further to a recommendation from the National Commission for Women. For more information visit www. There is an urgent need to identify gaps in ensuring availability of comprehensive abortion care (CAC) services for women and preventing deaths and disabilities.org). Women are owners of their bodies as well as caretakers of their families.

The author is executive director of Ipas Development Foundation, an NGO that has been working closely with the government at the national and state levels for over a decade to increase women’s access to comprehensive abortion care with the purpose of reducing deaths and disabilities faced by women.Globally: 56 mn abortions are done every year.Recent cases in the Supreme Court have brought out the debate on diagnosis of foetal abnormalities and women’s agency to exercise their reproductive rights for termination of pregnancy.India: 11.Women’s groups have strongly argued for reducing regulation of pregnancy outcomes for women and allowing women to be the judge for the course of their pregnancy.ipasdevelopmentfoundation. India was one of the 15 countries that passed a liberal abortion law in 1971.These technologies do not require services of specialist doctors, and world over there is a trend now towards task-shifting for safe abortion to other cadres of healthcare providers. But, women of this country are still waiting for the legislature to take a decision, making it a reality.Another significant feature of the proposed amendments is that no upper gestation limit for termination of pregnancy would apply in case of diagnosed foetal abnormalities incompatible with life.Under Section 5 of the law, upper gestation limit of 20 weeks does not apply when it is necessary to conduct terminations any time during the pregnancy to save the woman’s life.Case studiesMarch 2017: The Supreme Court rejected a plea made by a 37-year-old woman from Maharashtra to terminate her 26-week-old foetus on the ground that it suffered from Down’s syndrome after a medical board advised it. Chief among these is the lack of access to safe abortion services, apart from a general lack of awareness among women, particularly those in rural and remote areas of the country.There is a need to also focus on strengthening programme implementation strategies and community level action on abortion.It is estimated that 11.5 million abortions take place in India every year, a significant proportion of the global annual figure of 56 million. The Supreme Court has recently intervened in cases where women have sought abortion because the foetus is deformed, triggering demands to allow women to determine the course of their pregnancies. This is a matter of concern in modern times, when, as the WHO states, "When performed by a skilled provider using correct medical techniques and drugs, and under hygienic conditions, induced abortion is a very safe medical procedure”. The decision to continue a pregnancy (or not) is very personal and women have their reasons for the same. The court held that abortion of the foetus was only permissible within 20 weeks. Research shows that even today, less than 20 per cent of women are aware that abortion is legal in India. India was one of the 15 countries that passed a liberal abortion law in 1971. Newer and safer technologies that make abortion a very safe out-patient medical procedure that can be completed using manual vacuum aspiration (MVA) or a combination of prescription drugs (medical abortion) are considered to be the gold standard today. Unsafe abortion is the third biggest cause of maternal deaths in India. In India, unsafe abortion is the third biggest cause of maternal deaths. As there was no risk to the life of the pregnant woman, the court denied the petitioners the right to abort the foetus. This is in line with international standards and global recommendations.Abortion has been legal in India by virtue of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act, passed in 1971, which allows for termination of pregnancy up to 20 weeks of gestation for a broad range of conditions including when continuation of pregnancy is a risk to her physical or mental health, if pregnancy is a result of rape or incest, foetal abnormality, or failure of contraceptive method used by a married woman or her husband.Unsafe abortion is the third biggest cause of maternal deaths in India20% women are aware that abortion is legal in India.When this law was passed over four decades ago, the only available technology for termination of pregnancies was dilatation and curettage (D&C) — now an outdated invasive medical procedure — that required the use of anaesthesia for removing products of conception using a metal curette.If we look at abortion laws in the rest of the world, 60 countries have laws prescribing gestational limits.This proposal underscored additional challenges faced by some categories of women like survivors of rape and incest, very young women, women with disabilities etc. Today, it must amend the law and bring it in line with international standards and global recommendations. While arguing very strongly for provisions for managing pregnancies with confirmed foetal abnormalities incompatible with life, it needs to be understood that less than two per cent of women experience such a situation in their pregnancy. The decision about when to have children, the number of children and how to care for them, is theirs and theirs alone.We need to address these social barriers and strengthen women’s access to safe abortion services, and hold ourselves accountable for the needless deaths and disabilities faced by women in a liberal legal environment. Today, the government must bring it in line with international standards and reflect both medical advances and the rights of women over their own bodies. Recent court cases reiterate the need for increasing the gestation limit to 24 weeks for such and more vulnerable categories of women. The stigma around abortion takes precedence over the law and becomes a compelling factor leading women to choose unsafe pathways for termination of pregnancy when they should have access to the same, free-of-cost, from public health facilities.India was one of the 15 countries that passed a liberal abortion law in 1971.5 mn abortions take place every year.July 2009: The Supreme Court allowed a mentally-challenged rape victim who doctors said had a maximum IQ of a nine-year-old to give birth to her baby, saying nature will "take care” of the orphan mother and child.In 2008, the Bombay HC denied a woman, whose foetus had been diagnosed with a congenital heart defect, permission to abort her 26-week foetus. The Supreme Court held that Down’s Syndrome is not a life-threatening condition, and that there is no physical risk to the mother from the pregnancy. The safety provisions in the law, including provider definition, training requirement, opinion etc, were defined keeping women’s safety in light of this technology

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In 1415, King Henry V is reported to have inspected the English fleet before it sailed for war with France, thus beginning the tradition of fleet review by the head of state. The PFR or IFR is a grand ceremony where the President sails in a ship designated as the presidential yacht and inspects the warships at anchorage.Another timely and relevant event is Defexpo 2016, which is being held for the first time in Goa from March 26 to 31.

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The specially designed Edge-Sweeping brush focuses on dirt that accumulates around edges and corners. Well, not all bots are Amazon Alexa. The device has dual cleaning actions, namely single-pass cleaning and triple-pass cleaning (zig-zag motion), that achieve the desired cleaning as per individual needs.Microsoft Surface Pro 6Featuring a 12. You can bring home Alexa through Amazon Echo devices. Alexa is a smart home developed by global technology giant Amazon that helps you to vocally control your IoT devices and smart appliances installed at your home. It comes with "washable bins” which makes the appliance easy to clean and keep.Dyson absolute V 10Dyson introduced many new products this year, in which boats a powerful suction that is capable of removing even the hidden dust and dirt. The conversational virtual home assistant can also set reminders, read out news, book an appointment, and an even crack a joke if you want it to. Dyson absolute has a motor, bin and cyclone aligned in a row. Weighing just 1. The products aimed at keeping our home clean, easy to manage, with voice-controlled feature and many more.(Source). The year 2018 witnessed some high profile smart appliances that have made consumers life easy and smooth.3-inch touchscreen display, this Windows 10 hybrid, which just hit the market, is perfect for students or anyone on your list who is always on the go, making moves. It is able to process more than 60 decisions per second.iRobot Roomba e5

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The state opening of parliament by Queen Elizabeth II came after a string of tragedies which have shaken the nation, and the election on June 8 in which May's Conservatives saw their parliamentary majority wiped out.The queen, at an occasion shorn of its usual pageantry, read out the watered-down list of proposed legislation and lawmakers will then spend the next few days debating before bringing it to a vote.May could be forced to resign if she loses the vote, expected on June 29, just as the country embarks on highly sensitive negotiations for Britain's withdrawal from the European Union.After four terror attacks and a deadly tower block blaze that have darkened the national mood, anti-government protesters are also planning a "Day of Rage" in the streets that will converge outside parliament with temperatures forecast to hit 34 degrees Celsius (93 degrees Fahrenheit) -- London's hottest June day since 1976.The enfeebled premier, who is still locked in difficult talks with a Northern Irish party to prop up her administration, says the programme is about seizing opportunities offered by Brexit.The queen said: "My government's priority is to secure the best possible deal as the country leaves the European Union."She said her government would seek "to build the widest possible consensus on the country's future outside the European Union", amid divisions within May's own cabinet over the best strategy.The speech announced no fewer than eight bills to implement Brexit, and new legislation aimed at tackling extremist content online after the terror attacks.But the speech was notable also for what it did not contain. 

There was no mention of May's hugely controversial invitation to US President Donald Trump to come on a state visit.Also absent were key pledges the Conservatives had given in their manifesto for the recent election which analysts said had bombed with the electorate -- such as reform of social care for the elderly and more shake-ups in schools.There was also no mention of May's controversial promise to allow a parliamentary vote to repeal a ban on fox hunting, which angered left-wingers.The Times branded May's administration the "stumbling husk of a zombie government" and said she was now "so weak that she cannot arbitrate between squabbling cabinet ministers"."Downing Street is a vacuum," the newspaper said, two days after Britain and the EU formally started their Brexit negotiations.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said he was ready to step in and build a rival government -- although he and other opposition parties lack the collective numbers to bring down May."This is an unstable coalition, it's not even a coalition, they haven't even got an agreement with the DUP (Democratic Unionist Party)," he said."We're ready to form, obviously, a minority government if this government collapses and it may well," Corbyn said, while raising the possibility of a fresh election if parliamentary deadlock continues.May called the snap general election in a bid to strengthen her mandate heading into the Brexit talks.But the plan spectacularly backfired, leaving her with a minority government that is now trying to form a majority with Northern Ireland's ultra-conservative DUP.May has resisted calls to resign and is hoping for the support of the DUP's 10 MPs to boost her tally of 317 seats in the 650-seat parliament, but a deal has proved elusive so far.A DUP source said a deal was "certainly not imminent" as the talks "haven't proceeded in a way that the DUP would have expected" and cautioned that the party "can't be taken for granted".But even with DUP backing, the government would command only a tiny majority, and just a few rebel MPs could be enough to undermine it fatally.

The Queen's Speech, normally a chance for a new government to show off an ambitious programme, is usually a high point of British pomp, but this year there was no horse-drawn carriage procession, crown or ceremonial robes.The snap election plus the closeness to the monarch's official birthday parade last weekend meant it was deemed infeasible to prepare a second major event at short notice.The speech was initially planned for Monday but was postponed because of the turmoil following the election.The government has said this session of parliament will last two years -- meaning there would be no Queen's Speech next year -- in order to be able to pass the vast amount of Brexit-related legislation.But opposition parties have said it is a way for the government to avoid being voted down in a Queen's Speech next year, when talks in Brussels are expected to get tougher ahead of Britain's expected EU exit in March 2019.

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Crammed into a dome with one bathroom, six scientists will spend eight months munching on mostly freeze-dried foods. The participants will not be confined but will wear spacesuits whenever they step outside for geological expeditions, mapping studies or other tasks. Honolulu: Crammed into a dome with one bathroom, six scientists will spend eight months munching on mostly freeze-dried foods — with a rare treat of Spam — and have only their small sleeping quarters to retreat to for solace.

The simulated stay on Mars with a carefully selected crew of researchers embarked on a mission Thursday to gain insight into the psychological toll a similar real-life voyage would have on astronauts. It’s part of a NASA-funded human-behaviour experiment that could help the space agency send humans to the red planet in the next 20 years.

The man-made dome that the four men and two women call home is outfitted with futuristic white walls and an elevated sleeping platform on the world&Wholesale Vacuum space bags39;s largest active volcano in Hawaii. The vinyl-covered shelter spans 1,200 square feet, or about the size of a small, two-bedroom house.A video released by the group shows the six scientists in matching red polo shirts arriving and entering the dome to farewell handshakes from program associates. Except for the presence of the white van that brought the group, the scene was reminiscent of the red planet — the dome set in a barren, rock-strewn and reddish landscape with distant hills giving the feel of a wind-swept and forbidding environment."

I’m looking forward to building relationships with my crew," said mission commander James Bevington, a space scientist. "I fully anticipate coming out with five new best friends." They will have no physical contact with people in the outside world and will work with a 20-minute delay in communications with their support crew - the time it would take for an email to reach Earth from Mars.The project will study the psychological difficulties with living in isolated, confined conditions for an extended period. NASA hopes to send humans to an asteroid in the 2020s and Mars by the 2030s.

We're hoping to figure out how best to select individual astronauts, how to compose a crew and how to support that crew on long-duration space missions," said principal investigator Kim Binsted, a University of Hawaii science professor.The team members include engineers, a computer scientist, a doctoral candidate and a biomedical expert. They were selected from 700 applicants # subjected to personality tests, background checks and extensive interviews. "When I started, my biggest fear was that we were going to be that crew that turned out like Biosphere 2, which wasn't a very pretty picture," Bevington said.The experimental greenhouse-like habitat in Arizona became a debacle in the 1990s.

It housed different ecosystems and a crew of eight to try to understand what would be needed for humans to live on other planets. The participants were supposed to grow their own food and recycle their air inside the sealed glass space. But the experiment soon spiralled out of control, with the carbon dioxide level rising dangerously and plants and animals dying. The crew members grew hungry and squabbled so badly that by the time they emerged two years later, some of them weren't speaking to each other.

The University of Hawaii operates the dome, called Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation, or HI-SEAS, and NASA has dedicated more than $2 million to this stage of the project. Scientists previously lived in the dome for two other long-term NASA-funded stays - one of them lasting a year, the other eight months — to study food requirements and crew cohesion.A number of other Mars simulation projects exist around the world, but one of the chief advantages of the Hawaii experiment is the rugged, Mars-like landscape, on a rocky, red plain below the summit of the world's largest active volcano, the Big Island's Mauna Loa.The dome has a kitchen, laboratory and bathroom, plus small sleeping quarters for each member. Unlike Biosphere 2, it won't be airtight.

To maintain the crew's sense of isolation, bundles of food, including some canned goods and snacks, will be dropped off a distance from the dome, and the team members will send a robot to retrieve them.The participants will not be confined but will wear spacesuits whenever they step outside for geological expeditions, mapping studies or other tasks. They will wear instruments measuring their moods and proximity to other team members and use virtual reality devices to simulate familiar and comforting surroundings.Crammed into a dome with one bathroom, six scientists will spend eight months munching on mostly freeze-dried foods. The participants will not be confined but will wear spacesuits whenever they step outside for geological expeditions, mapping studies or other tasks. Honolulu: Crammed into a dome with one bathroom, six scientists will spend eight months munching on mostly freeze-dried foods — with a rare treat of Spam — and have only their small sleeping quarters to retreat to for solace. The simulated stay on Mars with a carefully selected crew of researchers embarked on a mission Thursday to gain insight into the psychological toll a similar real-life voyage would have on astronauts. It’s part of a NASA-funded human-behaviour experiment that could help the space agency send humans to the red planet in the next 20 years.The man-made dome that the four men and two women call home is outfitted with futuristic white walls and an elevated sleeping platform on the world&Wholesale Vacuum space bags39;s largest active volcano in Hawaii. The vinyl-covered shelter spans 1,200 square feet, or about the size of a small, two-bedroom house.A video released by the group shows the six scientists in matching red polo shirts arriving and entering the dome to farewell handshakes from program associates. Except for the presence of the white van that brought the group, the scene was reminiscent of the red planet — the dome set in a barren, rock-strewn and reddish landscape with distant hills giving the feel of a wind-swept and forbidding environment."I’m looking forward to building relationships with my crew," said mission commander James Bevington, a space scientist. "I fully anticipate coming out with five new best friends." They will have no physical contact with people in the outside world and will work with a 20-minute delay in communications with their support crew - the time it would take for an email to reach Earth from Mars.The project will study the psychological difficulties with living in isolated, confined conditions for an extended period. NASA hopes to send humans to an asteroid in the 2020s and Mars by the 2030s. "We're hoping to figure out how best to select individual astronauts, how to compose a crew and how to support that crew on long-duration space missions," said principal investigator Kim Binsted, a University of Hawaii science professor.The team members include engineers, a computer scientist, a doctoral candidate and a biomedical expert. They were selected from 700 applicants # subjected to personality tests, background checks and extensive interviews. "When I started, my biggest fear was that we were going to be that crew that turned out like Biosphere 2, which wasn't a very pretty picture," Bevington said.The experimental greenhouse-like habitat in Arizona became a debacle in the 1990s. It housed different ecosystems and a crew of eight to try to understand what would be needed for humans to live on other planets. The participants were supposed to grow their own food and recycle their air inside the sealed glass space. But the experiment soon spiralled out of control, with the carbon dioxide level rising dangerously and plants and animals dying. The crew members grew hungry and squabbled so badly that by the time they emerged two years later, some of them weren't speaking to each other.The University of Hawaii operates the dome, called Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation, or HI-SEAS, and NASA has dedicated more than $2 million to this stage of the project. Scientists previously lived in the dome for two other long-term NASA-funded stays - one of them lasting a year, the other eight months — to study food requirements and crew cohesion.A number of other Mars simulation projects exist around the world, but one of the chief advantages of the Hawaii experiment is the rugged, Mars-like landscape, on a rocky, red plain below the summit of the world's largest active volcano, the Big Island's Mauna Loa.The dome has a kitchen, laboratory and bathroom, plus small sleeping quarters for each member. Unlike Biosphere 2, it won't be airtight. To maintain the crew's sense of isolation, bundles of food, including some canned goods and snacks, will be dropped off a distance from the dome, and the team members will send a robot to retrieve them.The participants will not be confined but will wear spacesuits whenever they step outside for geological expeditions, mapping studies or other tasks. They will wear instruments measuring their moods and proximity to other team members and use virtual reality devices to simulate familiar and comforting surroundings.Crammed into a dome with one bathroom, six scientists will spend eight months munching on mostly freeze-dried foods. The participants will not be confined but will wear spacesuits whenever they step outside for geological expeditions, mapping studies or other tasks. Honolulu: Crammed into a dome with one bathroom, six scientists will spend eight months munching on mostly freeze-dried foods — with a rare treat of Spam — and have only their small sleeping quarters to retreat to for solace. The simulated stay on Mars with a carefully selected crew of researchers embarked on a mission Thursday to gain insight into the psychological toll a similar real-life voyage would have on astronauts. It’s part of a NASA-funded human-behaviour experiment that could help the space agency send humans to the red planet in the next 20 years.The man-made dome that the four men and two women call home is outfitted with futuristic white walls and an elevated sleeping platform on the world&Wholesale Vacuum space bags39;s largest active volcano in Hawaii. The vinyl-covered shelter spans 1,200 square feet, or about the size of a small, two-bedroom house.A video released by the group shows the six scientists in matching red polo shirts arriving and entering the dome to farewell handshakes from program associates. Except for the presence of the white van that brought the group, the scene was reminiscent of the red planet — the dome set in a barren, rock-strewn and reddish landscape with distant hills giving the feel of a wind-swept and forbidding environment."I’m looking forward to building relationships with my crew," said mission commander James Bevington, a space scientist. "I fully anticipate coming out with five new best friends." They will have no physical contact with people in the outside world and will work with a 20-minute delay in communications with their support crew - the time it would take for an email to reach Earth from Mars.

The project will study the psychological difficulties with living in isolated, confined conditions for an extended period. NASA hopes to send humans to an asteroid in the 2020s and Mars by the 2030s. "We're hoping to figure out how best to select individual astronauts, how to compose a crew and how to support that crew on long-duration space missions," said principal investigator Kim Binsted, a University of Hawaii science professor.The team members include engineers, a computer scientist, a doctoral candidate and a biomedical expert. They were selected from 700 applicants # subjected to personality tests, background checks and extensive interviews. "When I started, my biggest fear was that we were going to be that crew that turned out like Biosphere 2, which wasn't a very pretty picture," Bevington said.The experimental greenhouse-like habitat in Arizona became a debacle in the 1990s. It housed different ecosystems and a crew of eight to try to understand what would be needed for humans to live on other planets.

The participants were supposed to grow their own food and recycle their air inside the sealed glass space. But the experiment soon spiralled out of control, with the carbon dioxide level rising dangerously and plants and animals dying. The crew members grew hungry and squabbled so badly that by the time they emerged two years later, some of them weren't speaking to each other.The University of Hawaii operates the dome, called Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation, or HI-SEAS, and NASA has dedicated more than $2 million to this stage of the project. Scientists previously lived in the dome for two other long-term NASA-funded stays - one of them lasting a year, the other eight months — to study food requirements and crew cohesion.

A number of other Mars simulation projects exist around the world, but one of the chief advantages of the Hawaii experiment is the rugged, Mars-like landscape, on a rocky, red plain below the summit of the world's largest active volcano, the Big Island's Mauna Loa.The dome has a kitchen, laboratory and bathroom, plus small sleeping quarters for each member. Unlike Biosphere 2, it won't be airtight. To maintain the crew's sense of isolation, bundles of food, including some canned goods and snacks, will be dropped off a distance from the dome, and the team members will send a robot to retrieve them.The participants will not be confined but will wear spacesuits whenever they step outside for geological expeditions, mapping studies or other tasks. They will wear instruments measuring their moods and proximity to other team members and use virtual reality devices to simulate familiar and comforting surroundings.

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This is like traveling from London to Moscow, to put things in perspective," said Hackett. Kam McLeod, 19, and Bryer Schmegelsky, 18, were wanted over the murders of an Australian man and his American girlfriend, as well as of a Canadian university professor."An autopsy is being scheduled in Winnipeg to confirm their identities and to determine their cause of death.The bodies were discovered within a kilometer (1,100 yards) of where the items were found, and eight kilometers from the spot where their burned-out vehicle was discovered on July 22.Initially, the pair were reported missing themselves after their car was found torched in British Columbia -- but police then discovered the third body, and the Vancouver teens were named as formal suspects.

Deese&Vacuum bags Factory39;s family told US media that the couple had embarked on a road trip through Canada.Kam McLeod, 19, and Bryer Schmegelsky, 18, were wanted over the murders of an Australian man and his American girlfriend, as well as of a Canadian university professor.Late last week, police had found items linked to the suspects on the shores of the Nelson River.The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said the bodies had been found in dense brush in the central province of Manitoba."Obviously, we will not have the opportunity to speak with these individuals," he said, adding that he hoped examining the area where the bodies were found might provide some clues as to motive.Authorities then found the body # of 64-year-old Leonard Dyck, a botany professor at the University of British Columbia, on July 19.In an interview last month with the Canadian Press as the manhunt ramped up, Schmegelsky's father said his son was deeply troubled and had never recovered from his parents' divorce in 2005.Fowler had been living in British Columbia, local media reported, but the pair had been traveling extensively.The teens led police on a more than 3,000-kilometer (1,860-mile) chase halfway across the vast country to Manitoba province, where they ended up in the area near the village of Gillam. They also found a battered aluminum boat."At this time, we are confident that these are the bodies of the two suspects wanted in connection with the homicides in British Columbia," RCMP spokeswoman Jane MacLatchy told a news conference.

Nationwide manhuntThe pair were wanted over the murders of Australian Lucas Fowler, 23, and American Chynna Deese, 24, who were discovered shot to death on July 15 along a highway in British Columbia."I'm so sorry all of this had to happen.Experts said McLeod and Schmegelsky, who were childhood friends, would have struggled to survive over the long term. I'm so sorry that I couldn't rescue you."There is obviously a certain amount of relief that we were able to locate these people," MacLatchy told reporters.The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said the bodies had been found in dense brush in the central province of Manitoba."He's on a suicide mission," Alan Schmegelsky said."It's going to be extremely difficult for us to ascertain definitively what the motive was," RCMP Assistant Commissioner Kevin Hackett told reporters.Police deployed tracker dogs, a drone and search planes equipped with infrared cameras to comb the difficult, forested and swampy terrain, which was infested with mosquitos and home to bears and wolves.

The manhunt in Manitoba is over," Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale said on Twitter, seemingly eliminating any doubt that the fugitives had been found. (Photo: AFP) Montreal: Canadian police said Wednesday they had discovered the bodies of two men believed to be fugitive teens who allegedly murdered three people last month -- ending a nearly three-week nationwide manhunt

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India’s recent test of anti-satellite (A-SAT) missile has been termed as "a terrible, terrible thing” by NASA chief Jim Bridenstine, as reported by Engadget.It is being said that the missile that shot down the satellite reportedly created at least 400 pieces of orbital debris, including 60 larger than 6-inch in size.

Under the Mission Shakti, a joint mission of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the anti-satellite missile test was conducted in which one of India’s existing satellites operating in the lower orbit was shot down with a missile.”It is estimated that the risk to the ISS has increased by 44 per cent over the last ten days. It is being said that the missile that shot down the satellite reportedly created at least 400 pieces of orbital debris, including 60 larger than 6-inch in size.Though the astronauts are safe and the ISS could be manoeuvred if needed to avoid the debris, Bridenstine stressed that these activities are not sustainable or compatible with human spaceflight.According to Bridenstine, as per Engadget report, the anti-satellite missile test could "endanger astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS).

An official statement from the Government of India had claimed that the test was at a level low enough to ensure that any debris generated would fall back to Earth within weeks.The anti-satellite missile test could "endanger astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS). After the US, China, China Travel Vacuum Bag Suppliers and Russia, India is the fourth country to have anti-satellite missile capability..India’s successful anti-missile test, a part of Mission Shakti, had been announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a televised address to the nation on March 27.

NASA or the National Aeronautics and Space Administration is an independent agency of the United States Federal Government responsible for the civilian space program, as well as aeronautics and aerospace research.The Ministry of External Affairs in a statement stated that the technological test was carried out to verify that India has the capability to safeguard its space assets

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