Foreign and gay couples 'to be banned from having surrogate babies in India'


Foreign couples in live-in relationships, same-sex couples and singles will not be able to have surrogate babies in India anymore (picture posed by models)

Foreign couples in live-in relationships, same-sex couples and singles will not be able to have surrogate babies in India anymore (picture posed by models)

Foreign couples in live-in relationships, same-sex couples and single people may soon be unable to have surrogate babies in India.

The home ministry has asked the external affairs ministry to issue visas only to straight couples seeking to have a surrogate baby in the country.

The ministry added that such couples should have been married for at least two years.

Though there is no law on surrogacy in India, the Indian Council of Medical Research has drafted Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, 2010 which deals with the issue.

According to the Bill, assisted reproductive technology will be available to all persons, including single persons, married couples and unmarried couples, a member of the drafting committee said.

The new directive, however, changes the rules for foreigners.

It has become a cause of concern for foreigners coming to India for surrogacy, and those running surrogacy clinics. India is seen as a hub for outsourced pregnancies.

"There are a large number of embryos lying in various clinics which were to be implanted in surrogate mothers. This cannot happen now since embryos have been produced for those who don't qualify for commissioning surrogacy," Dr Sahil Gupta from Oval Healthcare said.

"We ourselves have 150 embryos and we do not know what to do with them," he added.

Gupta said only three out of 10 foreign individuals or couples seeking surrogacy are married. Others are either in live-in, singles or same-sex couples.

The new rules also ignore the women who cannot conceive irrespective of how long they are married.

"Then, what is the point waiting for two years? Moreover, in many societies around the world, marriage is no longer considered an important institution and couples have contractual partnership or live-in relationships which are legal," Gupta said.

The new rules have already brought down "business", according to Gupta.

"The cases have dropped to just three-four babies a month from 10-12 babies," Gupta added. 


Foreign and gay couples will not be allowed to have surrogate babies in India

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