India to ban surrogacy services for foreigners

The Centre on Wednesday made it clear in the Supreme Court that commercial surrogacy, where foreigners hire a womb in India to get a surrogate child, won't be allowed. The business was estimated to be growing by 20 per cent annually.

However, altruistic surrogacy will not be prohibited and considered absolutely illegal, provided the relation between the infertile couple and the surrogate mother is strictly non-professional.

If this gets implemented, no foreigner would be able to avail surrogacy services in India and there would be no import of embryo for surrogacy purposes.

The affidavit submitted by government further states that couples who choose to abort or mistreat their surrogate child born with disabilities will be booked under the provisions of law.

But critics say the couples are exploiting poor women in India by hiring them at a cut-rate cost to undergo the hardship, pain and risks of labor.

The government's affidavit, presented to the court in Delhi by Solicitor General Ranjit Kumar, said it would "require a few time to bring the law in place".

The process usually involves in-vitro fertilization and embryo transfer, leading to a rise in fertility centers offering such services.

Many foreign nationals come to India to get surrogate babies for a lesser price.

The Centre said an appropriate state authority would be set up under the proposed Assisted Reproductive Techniques (Regulation) Bill, 2014, to ascertain the genuineness of the need of infertile married Indian couples to have children.

India previously issued new rules in 2012 barring foreign gay couples and single people from using surrogate mothers to become parents, drawing sharp criticism from gay rights advocates and fertility clinics.

According to the Centre's affidavit, surrogate mothers who give birth were generally considered the "legitimate" mothers.