Considering the growing demand for IVF and Surrogacy, the Government of
India took an early initiative to come out with guidelines for the ethical conduct of Surrogacy in India. The Indian Council of Medical Research came out with a draft for the ART Guidelines, which forms the base for most of the Surrogacy and IVF Centers in India.

In view of the fact that India is becoming the “Surrogacy Destination”, the Government of India decided to come out with a law to regulate the business of IVF and Surrogacy in the country. The draft of the proposed legislation was drafted by a team of experts from the field of medicine and law.

The draft of the proposed bill is now with the Government of India which would soon take necessary steps to convert the bill to a law.

The Legal Scenario in India

Commercial surrogacy has been legal in India since 2002.Recently there has been a sharp increase in the frequency of commercial surrogacy arrangement in India. People from western countries are flocking to India to get a baby of their own genes. To deal with legal pre-requisites for a commercial surrogacy, there is no uniform law in India. The Parliament is still in the process of finalizing the Surrogacy Bill. For the time being, guidelines for Accreditation, supervision and regulation of ART clinics formulated by the Indian Council of Medical Research and National Academy of Medical Sciences which gives a basic platform and the code for conducting surrogacy in India. There are a certain novel measures that have been suggested in this code.

Owing to the controversies hovering around commercial surrogacy in the recent past, some grey areas in law have come to light. This has underlined the need for a legislation of some to deal with loopholes in the system ensuring that neither of the parties are cheated.

What does the term Surrogacy mean

The term surrogacy is used when a woman carries a pregnancy and gives birth to a baby for another woman. Opinion on the morality of surrogacy is divided. Surrogacy is legally accepted in some countries such as UK as a treatment option for selected groups of patients. However, surrogacy is still not allowed in many countries. Legislation governing surrogacy varies between countries and even in same country such as the USA, where policies vary between states

What is Commercial Surrogacy

In commercial surrogacy, the surrogate mother enters into an agreement with the commissioning couple and parent and agrees to bear the pregnancy. In return of her consent to carry the child in her womb, she is paid by the commissioning couple.

What is Altruistic Surrogacy

“Altruistic surrogacy” is a situation where the surrogate receives no financial reward for her pregnancy or the relinquishment of the child.

By LawZ Bureau,