India becoming surrogate pregnancy hub
IANS
IANS
, Feb 15, 2011, 03.57pm IST
Surrogate pregnancy, an assisted reproductive technique (ART) in which a woman carries in her womb the baby of another woman, has seen a spurt in India. Due to the healthier lifestyles of to-be mothers and lower costs compared to the West, the country could become a global hub in the field, gynaecology experts say.
"The reason why surrogate pregnancy is rising is mainly because of the low-cost factor, and the preferably healthy lifestyle of Indian women, much needed during pregnancy," Shivani Sachdev Gour, fertility expert and gynaecologist, said in an Interview.
"Women here are less exposed to a lifestyle with drugs, alcohol and smoking, which has a positive impact on the health of the baby as well as the mother. Also surrogacy laws in India are much lenient as compared to other countries," added Gour.
She says she gets around 25 patients every month from countries like Britain, the US, and countries in the Middle East at the Surrogacy Centre of India Healthcare, a private hospital she runs in south Delhi.
While the cost of treatment and expenses involved in surrogate pregnancy vary between Rs.50,000 and Rs.100,000 ($1,000 and $2,000) in India, the cost in other countries like the US and Britain is nearly five times that in India, said Gour.
"Surrogacy is advised in cases of malformed uterus, or when pregnancy is life-threatening. But the reasons are slowly expanding in our country," said Alka Kriplani, professor at the department of obstetrics and gynaecology at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).
According to experts, the success rate of surrogate pregnancy at centres in India is higher than in other countries.
"In over 60 per cent of cases, the prospective mother carries back a healthy baby, while the miscarriage rate is less than 15 per cent," said Gour.
Experts also emphasise on the need for stringent surrogacy norms at ART centres.
"A proper screening process is required. Apart from the carrier's age, which should be between 21 and 35 years, their medical, personal and family history should also be gauged to decipher her mental and physical well-being," explained Gour.
After the preliminary screening of the surrogate, a well detailed contract as per Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) guidelines is made between the surrogate and the couples in question. The process involves all the three main parties - the parent, child and the surrogate.
Prospective parents - mostly coming to India from the US, Britain and Israel - have discovered that the surrogacy laws of other countries often come in the way of parents returning home with their children, experts said.
"Surrogacy is rising and it is important to keep an eye on the use of the technique. It can be misused also as poor women are lured into becoming surrogate mothers because of the money involved," said Kriplani.
The draft Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART) Regulation Bill, 2010, that lays down guidelines for the practice of surrogacy, states that the birth certificate of a baby born out of rent-a-womb arrangement should be in the names of the intended parents, who would automatically become the new born's legal parents.
By Santanu Ganguly
As many of us know that Surrogacy is now a well explored and accepted form of starting a family that people are turning to. Derived from the Latin word surrogates referring to substitution, the word simply means a biological or non biological mother carrying the child of another woman for full nine months.
Surrogacy is advised to those who have either no or a malformed uterus, uterus damaged due to infection/ tumor, and where the uterus is removed for some clinical process. Surrogacy is also for those couples intending to be parents but where the woman is having repeated miscarriages.
When pregnancy is a life threatening condition for the woman, in India however, the prime reason for surrogacy is the cost factor which is approximately 5 times cheaper as compared elsewhere. In 2007, ICSI coasted 4 lacks abroad (U.K) and here the price was 60,000/-even today if we consider their commuting and stay charges it would still be cheaper to many outstation parents to be.
Some other factors working in the favor of India are the teams of doctors who are US/ UK trained and educated, the equipments are also imported from Europe or US and there is marginally no language barrier makes India as the amiable destination for many seeking pregnancy through a surrogate.
One reason that many of us do not know is that India is also a premium centre for surrogacy due to the healthy lifestyle of an Indian women. Indian women are categorically marked as someone not engaged in drugs, smoking, and alcohol and having a balanced and fresh food and vegetables in her diet which makes India a preferred destination for many foreign couples.
When it comes to surrogates in India, they have a proper screening process that includes being watchful of the age that should be between approx. 21 – 35 years. It is made sure that they are married with kids; with uncomplicated pregnancies, this helps to discern that she can successfully carry the pregnancy to completion. Their medical, personal and family history is also gauged to decipher the mental and the physical well being of the surrogate.
After the preliminary screening of the surrogate, a well detailed contract as per the ICMR guideline is made between the surrogate and the couples in question that are comprehensive to well guard all the hree main parties involves – the parent, child and the surrogate.
Many surrogate centers provide all these services and are very stringent about it. There are separate departments for paper work where the contract along with the medical reports is collated in one file and submitted to the embassy. Hence, the overall lack of legal hassles with the Indian Government ensuring that the commissioning parents are parents on Birth Certificate and for all legal and custodial purposes also adds to the advantage of surrogacy in India.
Dr. Shivani Sachdev Gour, a seasoned professional who has effectively delivered more than 100 babies over 2 years for international couples & is expecting over 100 babies over the next 8 months with 76 pregnant surrogates, running her own surrogate centre SCI Health care says,
“When it comes to providing legal aid, there is an independent lawyer that we recommend to parents as he is very experienced with these matters but couples are free to decide who they choose” She further confirmed that Surrogacy in India is booming as monthly on an average she has about 2-3 Indian patients and 25 International parents that are from Australia, America, Europe, UK, Korea, China, Middle East, Jakarta, and Africa all in their late thirties or early
forties every month.
Commenting on the success ratio of the surrogacy in India, Dr. Shivani informs that the miscarriage rate is 15 % however 55% - carry back their baby. She quotes, “In case of 4 embryos, success rate is 5/10 that 1 child will be born” This is indeed a very safe ration to rely
on.
Summing it up, we can say that Surrogacy overall has definitely proven to be one godsend means for many who while undergoing a complication thought that starting a family is just a distant dream. With modern amenities, well trained staff on hand and overall healthy surrogates,
India sure has become a hum of surrogate pregnancy.
If you are looking for simple pleasures of being a parent, if you are prepared to accept this life long responsibility, then this pregnancy awareness week you would be enthralled to know that your dream is just a surrogate away.
Surrogate pregnancy, an assisted reproductive technique (ART) in which a woman carries in her womb the baby of another woman, has seen a spurt in India. Due to the healthier lifestyles of to-be mothers and lower costs compared to the West, the country could become a global hub in the field, gynaecology experts say.
"The reason why surrogate pregnancy is rising is mainly because of the low-cost factor, and the preferably healthy lifestyle of Indian women, much needed during pregnancy," Shivani Sachdev Gour, fertility expert and gynaecologist, said in an Interview.
"Women here are less exposed to a lifestyle with drugs, alcohol and smoking, which has a positive impact on the health of the baby as well as the mother. Also surrogacy laws in India are much lenient as compared to other countries," added Gour.
She says she gets around 25 patients every month from countries like Britain, the US, and countries in the Middle East at the Surrogacy Centre of India Healthcare, a private hospital she runs in south Delhi.
While the cost of treatment and expenses involved in surrogate pregnancy vary between Rs.50,000 and Rs.100,000 ($1,000 and $2,000) in India, the cost in other countries like the US and Britain is nearly five times that in India, said Gour.
"Surrogacy is advised in cases of malformed uterus, or when pregnancy is life-threatening. But the reasons are slowly expanding in our country," said Alka Kriplani, professor at the department of obstetrics and gynaecology at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).
According to experts, the success rate of surrogate pregnancy at centres in India is higher than in other countries.
"In over 60 per cent of cases, the prospective mother carries back a healthy baby, while the miscarriage rate is less than 15 per cent," said Gour.
Experts also emphasise on the need for stringent surrogacy norms at ART centres.
"A proper screening process is required. Apart from the carrier's age, which should be between 21 and 35 years, their medical, personal and family history should also be gauged to decipher her mental and physical well-being," explained Gour.
After the preliminary screening of the surrogate, a well detailed contract as per Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) guidelines is made between the surrogate and the couples in question. The process involves all the three main parties - the parent, child and the surrogate.
Prospective parents - mostly coming to India from the US, Britain and Israel - have discovered that the surrogacy laws of other countries often come in the way of parents returning home with their children, experts said.
"Surrogacy is rising and it is important to keep an eye on the use of the technique. It can be misused also as poor women are lured into becoming surrogate mothers because of the money involved," said Kriplani.
The draft Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART) Regulation Bill, 2010, that lays down guidelines for the practice of surrogacy, states that the birth certificate of a baby born out of rent-a-womb arrangement should be in the names of the intended parents, who would automatically become the new born's legal parents.
By Santanu Ganguly
As many of us know that Surrogacy is now a well explored and accepted form of starting a family that people are turning to. Derived from the Latin word surrogates referring to substitution, the word simply means a biological or non biological mother carrying the child of another woman for full nine months.
Surrogacy is advised to those who have either no or a malformed uterus, uterus damaged due to infection/ tumor, and where the uterus is removed for some clinical process. Surrogacy is also for those couples intending to be parents but where the woman is having repeated miscarriages.
When pregnancy is a life threatening condition for the woman, in India however, the prime reason for surrogacy is the cost factor which is approximately 5 times cheaper as compared elsewhere. In 2007, ICSI coasted 4 lacks abroad (U.K) and here the price was 60,000/-even today if we consider their commuting and stay charges it would still be cheaper to many outstation parents to be.
Some other factors working in the favor of India are the teams of doctors who are US/ UK trained and educated, the equipments are also imported from Europe or US and there is marginally no language barrier makes India as the amiable destination for many seeking pregnancy through a surrogate.
One reason that many of us do not know is that India is also a premium centre for surrogacy due to the healthy lifestyle of an Indian women. Indian women are categorically marked as someone not engaged in drugs, smoking, and alcohol and having a balanced and fresh food and vegetables in her diet which makes India a preferred destination for many foreign couples.
When it comes to surrogates in India, they have a proper screening process that includes being watchful of the age that should be between approx. 21 – 35 years. It is made sure that they are married with kids; with uncomplicated pregnancies, this helps to discern that she can successfully carry the pregnancy to completion. Their medical, personal and family history is also gauged to decipher the mental and the physical well being of the surrogate.
After the preliminary screening of the surrogate, a well detailed contract as per the ICMR guideline is made between the surrogate and the couples in question that are comprehensive to well guard all the hree main parties involves – the parent, child and the surrogate.
Many surrogate centers provide all these services and are very stringent about it. There are separate departments for paper work where the contract along with the medical reports is collated in one file and submitted to the embassy. Hence, the overall lack of legal hassles with the Indian Government ensuring that the commissioning parents are parents on Birth Certificate and for all legal and custodial purposes also adds to the advantage of surrogacy in India.
Dr. Shivani Sachdev Gour, a seasoned professional who has effectively delivered more than 100 babies over 2 years for international couples & is expecting over 100 babies over the next 8 months with 76 pregnant surrogates, running her own surrogate centre SCI Health care says,
“When it comes to providing legal aid, there is an independent lawyer that we recommend to parents as he is very experienced with these matters but couples are free to decide who they choose” She further confirmed that Surrogacy in India is booming as monthly on an average she has about 2-3 Indian patients and 25 International parents that are from Australia, America, Europe, UK, Korea, China, Middle East, Jakarta, and Africa all in their late thirties or early
forties every month.
Commenting on the success ratio of the surrogacy in India, Dr. Shivani informs that the miscarriage rate is 15 % however 55% - carry back their baby. She quotes, “In case of 4 embryos, success rate is 5/10 that 1 child will be born” This is indeed a very safe ration to rely
on.
Summing it up, we can say that Surrogacy overall has definitely proven to be one godsend means for many who while undergoing a complication thought that starting a family is just a distant dream. With modern amenities, well trained staff on hand and overall healthy surrogates,
India sure has become a hum of surrogate pregnancy.
If you are looking for simple pleasures of being a parent, if you are prepared to accept this life long responsibility, then this pregnancy awareness week you would be enthralled to know that your dream is just a surrogate away.
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