Top India court allows passive euthanasia, but few aware of ‘living wills’

New Delhi, India – In a crowded ward of New Delhi’s All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), India’s premier public hospital, a mother sits quietly beside her 29-year-old son, Piyush Singh*.Diagnosed with stomach cancer a year ago, Singh has already undergone five rounds of chemotherapy. He now lies in the hospital’s palliative care unit, where the goal is no longer to cure the disease but to relieve pain and preserve his dignity.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4India’s Supreme Court allows first-ever passive euthanasia deathlist 2 of 4UK assisted dying bill fails after delays but advocates vow to try againlist 3 of 4‘I love life’: The man who has scheduled his death so he can enjoy livinglist 4 of 4From fringe to federal: The rise of eugenicist thinking in US policyend of list“The world comes to AIIMS when they are not well. But where shall we go?” asks his mother. “My son has already received five doses of chemotherapy, but his condition has not improved. The doctors are not telling us anything. I don’t know what to do next.”Piyush’s family is not asking for his life to end. They simply don’t know what comes when treatment fails.A few floors away, Aryan* has ...