Abstract

Euthanasia, the practice of killing without pain a person who is suffering from an incurable disease so that the person can die with dignity, is one of the hotly debated areas in medical ethics. This issue has been the subject of speculation during the recent decades in response to the medical development and conscious attempts of the social movements which are interested in this issue. Euthanasia is of different types considering the difference between the moral, juridical, and legal nature. The difference between the two main types of euthanasia, that is; active euthanasia and passive euthanasia, is that in the first a person is killed because he/she suffers from an incurable disease and severe pain, while in the second he/she is left in the lurch until he/she dies. Most religions reject the idea of active euthanasia, but they have a more flexible stance towards some other types. The proponents of euthanasia insist more than any other group on self-determination while the opponents provide ample justification ranging from moral and religious arguments to functional concerns.

Key words: euthanasia, medical ethics, moral principles, moral dilemma Euthanasia is a controversial topic that has been debated for hundreds of years and seems to coming up more frequently over this past decade. Euthanasia can be classified loosely and subjectively into categories such as active, passive, voluntary, or involuntary. It should also be known that there are no set universal definitions. Currently, many major medical associations are in favor of a death with dignity statute yet active euthanasia is illegal, except for an active form (physician assisted suicide) in 3 states. This paper proposes that active voluntary euthanasia or aid in dying, should be a right for any mentally competent, terminally ill patient who chooses to evoke th is right. Patients should be educated as to the full scope of treatment options while retaining the ultimate decision as their personal choice. The state of Oregon may be an example for the rest of the union to model similar statutes after, where-in the patient is given guidelines and waiting periods to forego before the final decision can be made. All treatment options should be made available, including those that would allow competent terminally ill patients to die as they saw fit. Keywords: euthanasia, dying with dignity KEY WORDS Euthanasia , physician-assisted suicide. This research examine the impact of euthanasia through a multi-layered study of the concept as a right to die from its roots. By examining this historically important concept,I clarify the process by which concept of euthanasia transformed from illegal to legal and also studied about the advantages and disadvantages of the concept on society as well as on individual.the time period studied includes the origin of the process of the use of euthanasia in different countries and transformation in indian society after landmark decision passed by apex court on the aruna shanbaug case which legalizes passive euthanasia and effect of it on indian society and legalisation of euthanasia in different societies in the world