Persons testing positive for infection by HIV or showing evidence of AIDS provoke revulsion and fear in medical doctors. These reactions stem from the general knowledge that the diagnosis of AIDS is akin to a death sentence and the belief that a positive HIV test is, inevitably.

In a vast, multi-ethnic, multi-religious country like India, it is to be expected that we have several world-views operating at the same time in people's search for health and healing.

Cancer of the cervix is the most prevalent form of cancer in developing countries, and accounts for 25 to 50 per cent of all cancers occurring in Indian women.

The Times of India dated 13 January 1994 featured on its front-page news of a tragic event. ‘A sixty-year old advocate... leaped to his death from the eighth floor of the Bombay Hospital and died of multiple injuries... (This followed) the revelation that he was HIV positive ...

The Hindu Widows Remarriage and Property Act, 1989, represents a significant legislative reform aimed at improving the social and economic status of Hindu widows in India.

The Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act, 1956, is an Indian law that governs the legal process of adoption and the maintenance obligations within Hindu families.

The focus on mother and child health as a key element in Indian health policy evolved out of what was identified as one of the strongest explanatory factors for continued high fertility, viz., the high infant mortality rates.