Govt plans new laws to curb rent-a-womb rackets

Sumit Pande / CNN-IBN

TimePublished on Monday , November 05, 2007 at 13:43 in Nation section

New Delhi: India has become the new hire-a-womb destination for clients from all over the world. There are no proper laws to regulate it and that’s why the Government is now preparing its first legislation on surrogate motherhood.

Pushpa, a surrogate mother in Anand district, Gujarat, is part of this fledging industry and says that she is realising her dreams through this motherhood of a different kind.

“I live in a rented house but once money comes in we could easily build our own house,” Pushpa said.

But there are only two laws in India that deal with infant and the mother. The first one bans advertisement of baby food to encourage breastfeeding and the second one deals with maternity leave of the mother. However, no statues regulate surrogate motherhood in India.

So the proposed legislation will deal broadly with three issues – pre- and post-natal health care for the surrogate mother and the child, legal and financial obligation of the client in case of death of either the child or the mother and issues related to organ donations in the future.

In another move the ambit of the law to protect women from domestic violence is being increased, the proposal is to protect children through the law.

"We are just trying to make it an all-inclusive law so that everybody can be protected under one umbrella,” Women and Child Development Minister, Renuka Chaudhary said.

Whether real or surrogate, rights of the mother have become a matter of concern for the ministry and this time no stones will be left unturned.