Gaps in surrogacy bill

The Hindu (Aarti Dhar) : Women’s health activists have asked the Centre not to rush into finalising the ‘Assisted Reproductive Technologies (Regulation) Bill, 2013’ and, instead, hold wider deliberations with women’s rights organisations, queer rights, human rights and legal rights organisations across the country.

In its response to the Draft Bill, Sama Resource Group for Women and Health, while appreciating the initiative of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) for making efforts to regulate the booming Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART) industry, including commercial surrogacy, in the country, has said though the Bill acknowledges the importance and significance of ethical practices in the context of ART services, in the present form, it is inadequate in protecting and safeguarding the rights and health of women going for IVF techniques, recruited as surrogates and children born through commercial surrogacy.   

It also lacks setting the standards for medical practice and completely ignores the regulation of the third party agents who play pivotal role in arranging surrogates such as surrogacy agents, tourism operators and surrogacy home operators. 

“The Draft Bill should effectively regulate and monitor consultancies, surrogacy agents, surrogacy home operators, private agencies and travel/tourism firms, law firms involved in offering and promoting ART and surrogacy services.” 

Surrogacy stakeholders draw up guidelines

AHMEDABAD (Radha Sharma/Times of India) : Most of the women driving multimillion-dollar surrogacy industry in India by renting out their wombs to childless couples do so to beat poverty. Often, they are exploited by agents and even risk their lives.

While there is no legal framework enacted - the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Bill, years after it was drafted, is yet to be passed - a handful of stakeholders have formed a society to assure surrogates get basic remuneration, compensation in medical crises and, most importantly, respect for carrying somebody's child for nine months and delivering happinessThe first-ever Indian Society for Third-Party Assisted Reproduction (INSTAR) has now been formed. Infertility experts, lawyers, embryologists and social workers from 15 states including Gujarat have joined hands to enforce self-imposed moral and ethical guidelines for the welfare of surrogates in India.

Surrogacy becomes family enterprise in Gujarat

Ahmedabad (Bharat Yagnik / Times of India) : While debates rage across the world over the exploitation of women who become surrogates in India, many daughters in the state are following in the footsteps of their mothers to rent their wombs and deliver themselves from poverty.
Renuka (23) recently delivered a boy for an Indian-American childless couple. Married at the age of 18, her in-laws never took her back after she delivered a child. She was staring at a life of being a domestic maid.

Rules tightened for foreigners commissioning surrogacy

The Union Home Ministry will withdraw the relaxation on its guidelines for foreign nationals intending to visit India for commissioning surrogacy by this month-end.

NEW DELHI (Shemin Joy/Deccan Herald) : The ministry has written to all the Indian embassies that they should adhere to the guidelines and should not offer any concession from November 1 as the relaxations in the guidelines are ending on October 31. Embassies should not grant visa to couples if they do not fulfil all the conditions, a senior official said.

The guidelines for foreigners planning surrogacy in India came up in July last year following allegations that those from abroad were cheating surrogate mothers. There were also reports that the children were ill-treated in foreign land and that they were not treated as citizens there.

According to the guidelines, only those foreign couples who are married for two years could apply for visa for commissioning surrogacy. It was also emphasised that many were coming on tourist visa for this purpose though it was not the appropriate visa category.

It said those not coming on medical visa will be liable for action for violation of visa conditions. It will also be necessary in such cases to ensure that the surrogate mother is not cheated.

Along with visa applications, the guidelines said, a letter from the Embassy of the foreign country in India or the Foreign Ministry of the country should be enclosed.

It should clearly state that the country recognises surrogacy and the child to be born to the couple through the Indian surrogate mother will be permitted entry into their country as their biological child.

The treatment should be done only at the registered ART clinics recognised by Indian Council of Medical Research. The couple should produce a duly notarised agreement between them and the prospective Indian surrogate mother.

Source : http://www.deccanherald.com/content/362823/rules-tightened-foreigners-commissioning-surrogacy.html