The present paper explores the applicability of menstrual regulation (MR) as an abortion method in the Indian context. While doing so, MR method is evaluated socio-medically and legally. Effort has also been made to evaluate its feasibility in terms of resources and acceptability to providers and users in India. Evaluation is based on a review of literature on various aspects of MR of the last 25 years. This exercise of socio-medical, legal and feasibility evaluation of MR builds a strong case for its promotion to bring down abortion related morbidity and mortality, to enhance the opportunities for potential users to avail of contraceptive services, to reduce the psychological burden of guilt borne by the women for undergoing an abortion, to reduce the intensity of emotional trauma that they experience for having had an abortion. Finally, the paper also discusses the constraints in promoting MR in India and strategies to overcome them. Against this backdrop, the paper emphasises the critical role of the Information-Education-Communication (IEC) component and the need to incorporate it officially in the MR promotion policy.

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