In a declaration at the supreme Court on Wednesday October 27, 2015, the Indian government indicated that it wishes to forbid foreigners from the possibility of using Indian women on its’ territory from being used for the purposes of surrogate motherhood.
The Health Research department of the Indian Ministry of Family and Health signaled the Supreme Court that “the Indian government does not support commercial maternity substitution”. The Indian government hopes to regulate reproductive tourism which is in full growth and thereby fight against the business of surrogate mothers happening on its’ soil. The poverty of certain women is widely exploited by foreigners for reproductive purposes, India being one of the frequent destinations for surrogate motherhood, because the “prices” in vigor are very low there. In this country, more than three thousand clinics and agencies are organized for this business estimated at a minimum of 138 million dollars, and growing by 20% per year.
The Indian government has indicated that it will take « a long time to change the law » but that it « will forbid and punish the commercial surrogate motherhood services”. The new restrictions requested by the government necessitate Parliament’s approval and a bill should be published on line soon and will be open to public comments until November 15th.
At the end of 2012, India had already forbidden single and homosexual people from soliciting surrogate mothers.
Preceding India, Thailand’s Parliament voted a law on February 20, 2015, forbidding the practice of gestational surrogacy for all foreign couples.
Alliance VITA is a partner of the No Maternity Traffic association which launched an appeal to universally abolish gestational surrogacy, a disgraceful practice which commercializes the bodies of women and sells unborn children.
