Surrogacy Regulation Bill And ART Bill 2021 Passes The Rajya Sabha

Surrogacy bill and ART bill passed in the Rajya Sabha on 8th December

The Surrogacy Regulation Bill 2020 and ART (Assisted Reproductive Technology) Bill 2021 passes Rajya Sabha on 8th December . The surrogacy Bill 2020 earlier passed by the Lok Sabha was went to the select committee of the Rajya Sabha. The Union health minister Mansukh Mandaviya told that the aim of both the bills is to curb the exploitation of women.

The union minister also added that for decades IVF and surrogacy are prevalent in India. Our country has many unregulated IVF centers with unregulated surrogacy sex selection. He also added that Unmarried women sells their womb to overcome financial crisis. This should not happen as it is physically unhealthy and ethically wrong. In ART , stimulation of ovaries helps in extraction of eggs during a highly technical process and this technical process needs regulation.

SURROGACY BILL AND ART BILL PRESENTED BY HEALTH MINISTER IN THE RAJYA SABHA

Surrogacy bill and ART bill Motives:

The Aim of both the bills is to give support to motherhood and not to create an industry where commercial gains are made. For this reason government through bill had made provision of allowing one surrogacy for one women only. The Union minister also said that one year’s Insurance in case of ART bill and 36 months Insurance in case of surrogacy is mandatory. Penalties of Rs 5 to 10 lakhs for the first time offenders. Penalties of Rs 10 to 20 lakhs or imprisonment for 8 years for a repeat offender. The Select committee of the Rajya Sabha gave 64 suggestions. The Select Committee suggested of bringing both the bills together to have better results.

Opposition’s Take on the Surrogacy Bill and ART Bill 2021:

BJD’s Rajya Sabha member Dr. Amar Patnaik said that government should reconsider the time of one year stipulated for IVF. The opposition members raised the issue of allowing the LGBTQ community to avail the surrogacy. It should not be made available for the heterosexual couples only. ICMR allows single mother to benefit from ART but both the bills are missing these details.

OPPOSITION VIEWS ON SURROGACY AND ART BILL IN THE RAJYA SABHA

The Rajya Sabha M.P Ajit Kumar Bhuyan said that the ban on commercial surrogacy shows that the law makers are not in touch with the reality. This bill is curtailing the right of woman surrogates by removing commercial surrogacy component. Why women meant to provide these services free of cost?. The bill doesn’t take into account the violence faced by women at home. Why a woman have to go through highly intrusive procedure in name of love and compassion. Why women have to be altruistic about this ?