{"id":50152,"date":"2025-08-01T20:55:31","date_gmt":"2025-08-01T15:25:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=50152"},"modified":"2025-08-01T20:55:43","modified_gmt":"2025-08-01T15:25:43","slug":"surrogacy-regulation-act-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/01-08-2025\/surrogacy-regulation-act-2021","title":{"rendered":"Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS2\/Health, GS3\/ S&amp;T<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>The Supreme Court<\/strong> reserved its verdict on <strong>petitions challenging the age cap for couples<\/strong> seeking to have a child through surrogacy.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>The Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, 2021 and the Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021<\/strong>, prescribe the legal framework for surrogacy.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Surrogacy: <\/strong>The Act defines surrogacy as a practice where a woman gives birth to a child for an intending couple with the intention to hand it over to them after the birth.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It is permitted only for <strong>altruistic purposes <\/strong>or for couples who suffer proven infertility or disease.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Surrogacy is <strong>prohibited for commercial purposes<\/strong> including for sale, prostitution or any other forms of exploitation.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Abortion: <\/strong>Abortion of such a fetus is allowed <strong>only with the consent of the surrogate mother <\/strong>and the authorities and must adhere to the provisions of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Eligibility and Conditions for Couples: <\/strong>A couple should procure <strong>certificates of eligibility and essentiality<\/strong> in order to have a child via surrogacy.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The couple is deemed \u2018eligible\u2019 if they have been <strong>married for five years,<\/strong> the wife is aged between <strong>23-50 years <\/strong>and the husband is between <strong>26-55 years, <\/strong>and single women must be between the ages <strong>of 35 and 45 years.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The couple must not have<strong> any living child<\/strong> (biological, adopted or surrogate).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A child with <strong>mental or physical disabilities,<\/strong> or one suffering from a <strong>life-threatening disorder<\/strong> has been exempted from the above criterion.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The couple can get an \u2018essential\u2019 certificate if suffering from <strong>proven infertility <\/strong>of either partner certified by a District Medical Board.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>They must also have <strong>insurance coverage for 16 months for the surrogate mother,<\/strong> covering any postpartum complications.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Eligibility to be a surrogate:<\/strong> A surrogate mother has to be a<strong> close relative <\/strong>of the couple, a married woman with a child of her own, aged between <strong>25-35 years,<\/strong> who can be a surrogate <strong>only once<\/strong> in her life.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>She must also possess a certificate of <strong>medical and psychological fitness<\/strong> for surrogacy.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Regulation: <\/strong>It <strong>mandates the constitution of National Surrogacy Board (NSB) <\/strong>and <strong>State Surrogacy Boards (SSB)<\/strong> respectively.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>This body is tasked with enforcing standards for surrogacy clinics, investigating breaches and recommending modifications.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Offences:<\/strong> Offences under the Act include commercial surrogacy, selling of embryos, exploiting, abandoning a surrogate child etc.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>These may invite up to <strong>10 years of imprisonment<\/strong> and a fine of up to <strong>Rs. 10 lakh.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Arguments in Favour of the Age Limit for Intending Parents:<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Child Welfare and Parenting Capacity: <\/strong>Ensures that parents are physically and mentally capable of raising a child through their formative years.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Regulatory Standardisation: <\/strong>Provides uniformity and legal clarity for clinics and surrogacy arrangements across India.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Balances Reproductive Rights and Health Risks: <\/strong>Women beyond 50 and men beyond 55 face higher risks of medical complications, genetic abnormalities, and age-related fertility decline.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Supports Policy Goals of Responsible Parenthood: <\/strong>Reinforces the idea that reproduction &#8211; natural or assisted &#8211;  should happen within a responsible age window for the well-being of both child and parents.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Arguments Against Age Limit for Intending Parents<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Violation of Reproductive Autonomy: <\/strong>The age restrictions infringe on the fundamental right to reproductive choice under Article 21 of the Constitution (Right to Life and Personal Liberty).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Arbitrary and Inflexible Limits: <\/strong>The fixed age cutoffs do not account for individual health status, biological variations, or advances in medical science.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Excludes Late Marriages and Second Marriages: <\/strong>With changing social trends, many people are marrying or remarrying later in life, the age limits unjustly exclude such couples.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>No Similar Restrictions in Natural Conception: <\/strong>The State does not restrict couples from naturally conceiving children at older ages, yet imposes age restrictions only on ART and surrogacy, which raises concerns of unjustified interference.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Way Ahead<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>While age limits under the ART and Surrogacy Acts aim to ensure medical safety and child welfare, a <strong>more balanced, rights-based approach is needed.<\/strong>\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The law could adopt a<strong> flexible, case-by-case evaluation based on medical fitness, <\/strong>psychological readiness, and social support systems.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>This would <strong>uphold reproductive autonomy,<\/strong> align with constitutional rights, and reflect evolving social and medical realities.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Source: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/explained\/explained-law\/before-the-supreme-court-questions-over-the-age-cap-in-surrogacy-law-10162551\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>IE<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<h3><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h3>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">The Supreme Court reserved its verdict on petitions challenging the age cap for couples seeking to have a child through surrogacy.<\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<h3><strong>Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021<\/strong><\/h3>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Surrogacy: The Act defines surrogacy as a practice where a woman gives birth to a child for an intending couple with the intention to hand it over to them after the birth.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">It is permitted only for altruistic purposes or for couples who suffer proven infertility or disease.\u00a0<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Surrogacy is prohibited for commercial purposes including for sale, prostitution or any other forms of exploitation.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Abortion: Abortion of such a fetus is allowed only with the consent of the surrogate mother and the authorities and must adhere to the provisions of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act.<\/li>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/01-08-2025\/surrogacy-regulation-act-2021\" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read\u00a0More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-50152","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50152","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50152"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50152\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":50167,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50152\/revisions\/50167"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50152"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50152"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50152"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}