Loksabha passes Surrogacy (Regulation) Bill prohibiting commercial surrogacy
Total Views |
New Delhi, December 19: The winter session in the Lok Sabha today passed the Surrogacy (Regulation) Bill, 2016 allowing altruistic surrogacy and prohibiting commercial surrogacy. The bill introduced by Minister of Health and Family Welfare, J. P. Nadda in Lok Sabha on November 21, 2016, defines surrogacy as a practice where a woman gives birth to a child for an intending couple and agrees to hand over the child after the birth to the intending couple.
Surrogacy is an arrangement whereby an intending couple commissions a surrogate mother to carry their child. The intending couple must be Indian citizens and married for at least five years with at least one of them being infertile. Altruistic surrogacy involves no monetary compensation to the surrogate mother other than the medical expenses and insurance coverage during the pregnancy. Commercial surrogacy includes surrogacy or its related procedures undertaken for a monetary benefit or reward exceeding the basic medical expenses and insurance coverage.
It is as per the bill passed now that the surrogate mother and the intending couple need eligibility certificates from the appropriate authority. The Bill does not specify a time limit within which such certificates will be granted. It also does not specify an appeal process in case the application is rejected. The surrogate mother must be a ‘close relative’ of the intending couple. The Bill does not define the term ‘close relative’. Further, the surrogate mother (close relative) may donate her own egg for the pregnancy. This may lead to negative health consequences for the surrogate baby.
For an abortion, in addition to complying with the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971, the approval of the appropriate authority and the consent of the surrogate mother is required. The Bill does not specify a time limit for granting such an approval. Further, the intending couple has no say in the consent to abort.
According to the bill, surrogacy is permitted when it is for intending couples who suffer from proven infertility, altruistic and not for commercial purposes not for producing children for sale, prostitution or other forms of exploitation. Also the Surrogacy clinics must apply for registration within a period of 60 days from the date of appointment of appropriate authority and cannot undertake surrogacy related procedures unless they are registered. The intending couple should also have a ‘certificate of essentiality’ and a ‘certificate of eligibility’ issued by the appropriate authority.
The Bill specifies a range of offences and penalties for other contraventions of the provisions of the Bill and initiating commercial surrogacy. The offences stated in the bill against the commercial surrogacy constitute undertaking or advertising commercial surrogacy, exploiting the surrogate mother, abandoning, exploiting or disowning a surrogate child and selling or importing human embryo or gametes for surrogacy. These offences will attract a minimum penalty of 10 years and a fine up to 10 lakh rupees.
A certificate of essentiality will be issued upon fulfilment of the following conditions a certificate of proven infertility of one or both members of the intending couple from a District Medical Board an order of parentage and custody of the surrogate child passed by a Magistrate’s court and insurance coverage for the surrogate mother.
