<p>The Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2020, which came into effect early this year after legislative scrutiny and a long debate in the public domain, is meant to curb unethical practices and to ensure the safety and welfare of everyone, including babies, involved in surrogacy. Five months after the Act came into force, the government has notified the rules to support these aims. The rules mandate that couples who intend to take the surrogacy route have to buy a three-year health insurance for surrogate mothers. They also stipulate that the number of attempts of any surrogacy procedure on the surrogate mother should not exceed three and that the mother should be allowed abortion in case of complications during surrogacy. There are also provisions that regulate the functioning of private surrogacy clinics and ensure that they have expertise in the form of adequate specialist doctors and counsellors.</p>.<p>The legislation was long needed to ensure fair practices in an area that has needed regulation. Malpractices like sex selection and exploitation of surrogate women are known to have been common. The advances in assisted reproductive technology (ART) in recent years had made it imperative to put in place a regulatory system which protected the rights of all individuals involved — the surrogate mother, the baby and the couple seeking a child. The law bars commercial surrogacy and permits it only for altruistic purposes for couples suffering from infertility or disease. It will help curb some malpractices but is considered too restrictive in its scope. There have been many cases of exploitation of vulnerable young women. Gujarat, especially Anand, had become a popular centre for the surrogacy industry, where even foreigners made use of the lax legal provisions governing the practice.</p>.<p>It is estimated that about three crore Indian couples have fertility-related problems and may want treatment of some kind. Limiting surrogacy to close relatives, as the law does, would restrict the choice of couples who want to go in for it. It is pointed out that even close relatives would not accept surrogacy for altruistic purposes, and the law might lead to pressure on women within the family to go in for it. A parliamentary committee had opposed the outright ban on commercial surrogacy, calling it too moralistic and violative of women’s freedom of choice. The government should consider widening the scope of the law after studying the working of the present law. There are many ethical and human issues involved in surrogacy. They should be addressed and the law should be framed in such a way that maximum people gain from it without compromising on the interests of those involved.</p>
<p>The Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2020, which came into effect early this year after legislative scrutiny and a long debate in the public domain, is meant to curb unethical practices and to ensure the safety and welfare of everyone, including babies, involved in surrogacy. Five months after the Act came into force, the government has notified the rules to support these aims. The rules mandate that couples who intend to take the surrogacy route have to buy a three-year health insurance for surrogate mothers. They also stipulate that the number of attempts of any surrogacy procedure on the surrogate mother should not exceed three and that the mother should be allowed abortion in case of complications during surrogacy. There are also provisions that regulate the functioning of private surrogacy clinics and ensure that they have expertise in the form of adequate specialist doctors and counsellors.</p>.<p>The legislation was long needed to ensure fair practices in an area that has needed regulation. Malpractices like sex selection and exploitation of surrogate women are known to have been common. The advances in assisted reproductive technology (ART) in recent years had made it imperative to put in place a regulatory system which protected the rights of all individuals involved — the surrogate mother, the baby and the couple seeking a child. The law bars commercial surrogacy and permits it only for altruistic purposes for couples suffering from infertility or disease. It will help curb some malpractices but is considered too restrictive in its scope. There have been many cases of exploitation of vulnerable young women. Gujarat, especially Anand, had become a popular centre for the surrogacy industry, where even foreigners made use of the lax legal provisions governing the practice.</p>.<p>It is estimated that about three crore Indian couples have fertility-related problems and may want treatment of some kind. Limiting surrogacy to close relatives, as the law does, would restrict the choice of couples who want to go in for it. It is pointed out that even close relatives would not accept surrogacy for altruistic purposes, and the law might lead to pressure on women within the family to go in for it. A parliamentary committee had opposed the outright ban on commercial surrogacy, calling it too moralistic and violative of women’s freedom of choice. The government should consider widening the scope of the law after studying the working of the present law. There are many ethical and human issues involved in surrogacy. They should be addressed and the law should be framed in such a way that maximum people gain from it without compromising on the interests of those involved.</p>
