Meena, who had been running a surrogacy centre in Lajpat Nagar for almost a decade and a half, shut down the home before Covid. This was the time when the Act was strictly implemented. After calling her several times, she agreed but on meeting her, she asked for assurance that nothing wrong would happen to her. We were doing this work till the time surrogacy was legal.
After a lot of deliberation, the discussion progressed to the point that I should do the video interview but if I see any risk, I should remove my face. My first and natural question was how did the idea of running a surrogacy home come to me? In response, he told the whole story in detail.
‘It must have been some 20 years ago. My husband left me first. We had two children. I am from another state. I came to Delhi relying on my husband. No education, no job. I was not even able to pay the rent of the room, then a neighbor said- Do you know, there is a shop here that sells eggs for ladies’.
‘I was surprised as to what this was. But the need was so great that if someone asked her to sell her blood, she would do it. The same woman took me to the egg shop.
I met someone there who told me that an injection will be given on the upper side of the leg. Then the eggs will be taken out after 15 days. I will get Rs. 20,000 in return.
‘I was afraid that something might go wrong after getting the injection. Who takes care of small children? Seeing my fear, that man said that you bring someone else. Check him. Then if it seems right, do it yourself. You will also get money for bringing someone. How much? 5 thousand.’
‘I immediately started looking for women from my area. I took the first one with me. After a few days I was told to bring her along on a certain date, there is a pickup. Then I came to know that pickup is used for taking out eggs. That woman was absolutely fine. She got money and I also got money. After this I started taking women with me.’
‘Gradually, I left the shop owner and started going directly to the hospital. They were paying very high rates. My demand was also increasing. One day I came to know about surrogacy. The doctor himself explained everything. Then I found a woman. Tall and strong. After IVF, the surrogate would go to her home, or if the client was rich, she would go with him. But then when the cases of miscarriage increased, a good doctor suggested that you should make your own surrogacy home. Keep the women there for nine and a half months. You will get separate money for that.’
‘Then I took a smaller room. Eventually I had three floors with nine rooms each. Three surrogates lived in each room. The home was always full.’
Did you ever feel bad that you are earning due to compulsion of poor women?
‘Why would we feel bad? We were doing good. Look at the poor states. People in Delhi are eating rotis coated with ghee. There, they fill their stomachs by taking grains out of cow dung. No one there even knows what people eat here. All the surrogates came to know about pizza and burgers after coming here, and the clients themselves used to bring them to eat.’
‘Many people still call me saying, Didi, please get it done, we need money. There are many people who are rich but childless. They call. But I refuse everyone.’
But many people are doing it even though it is illegal?
‘Yes. They are doing it, but I don’t want to get embroiled in all this. I can’t go to court.’
How did you get girls?
‘Earlier, doctors used to contact us to tell us that there is a need for this or that. An agent used to be associated with us. He used to bring girls. Most of them used to come from Bihar, Bengal, Jharkhand. But we used to make sure that she is married, has children and her husband agrees. Only then we used to move ahead.’
How much did you and she get for bringing in a surrogate mother?
‘This was usually decided by the doctor. We used to get a package of Rs. 50,000. Apart from this, the client also paid for the house rent and food. The remaining Rs. 5 to 7 lakhs went to the surrogate.’
What was your work?
‘We used to keep an eye on the surrogates to see if they were following all the rules. They had to take medicines on time. Sometimes some surrogates would go into depression after staying away from their families. This could have an impact on the unborn child. So we would explain it to them. I used to go to meet them every evening.’
Did the prospective parents demand a specific type of surrogate?
‘Yes. It used to happen in the beginning. They would say that they want a fair complexion, good height. They should be able to speak English so that the child can also hear that language. They would also argue a lot about caste. Some didn’t want a non-vegetarian girl, some wanted the same. But this is an old thing. Then people started thinking that the child will take after the parents and not the one who carries the child in her womb’.
Has it ever happened that a surrogate became attached to the child?
‘Yes, there was always a fear of it happening. But we used to get it written in the contract that they would not get to see the child after delivery. Many people insisted on breastfeeding, but the hospital itself would give training for bottle milk so that all this does not happen. Anyway, we never take the egg of a surrogate. There is an outside donor, about whom no one knows anything.’
Surrogates never got upset during the nine months?
‘What are you saying. Everyone used to come to my centre skinny and thin and used to return fair and fair. No one would have ever got that much comfort and variety of food. Yes, but what goes on inside, what can one say?’
How did such women get money?
‘The day ET (embryo transfer) happens, the money starts getting counted from that day itself. Many people ask for money every month and in the end they get less money. Many people ask for the money in lump sum. But most people take 10 to 15 thousand rupees in a month. The rest is given after delivery.’
Have you ever faced any legal problems in all these years?
‘When I was doing it, surrogacy was legal. But even then there used to be some or the other problem. For example, once the child was found to have a birth defect and the parents refused to accept him. They were not even ready to pay the money. The child was in the hospital for many days. Many times the parents do not get along and they do not even want to adopt the child. But what do we do in such a situation? Our surrogate has carried the child in her womb for so many months, we have to pay her money. Then the matter would go to court.’
Even though surrogacy in exchange for money has been banned, it is still going on, involving everyone from brokers to hospitals. There were some arguments about making it more transparent instead of stopping it.
Dr. Nitij Muria, member of the surrogacy board Who is also the MD of Indira IVF, says- In the current Surrogacy Act, only altruistic surrogacy is allowed, that is, the surrogate mother should not get any kind of expenses or fees except medical expenses and insurance. The ban on commercial surrogacy is a challenge for those couples and single parents who are unable to have children due to medical reasons.
Currently, the couple has to prove to the district medical board that one of the spouses is not medically fit for pregnancy. Such couples can opt for international surrogacy or adoption but the cost is very high. There are many other very strict standards and documentation in the Act, which even a lawyer is needed to understand. In such a situation, people wishing to become parents have to face a lot of difficulties if they want to choose the path of surrogacy.
On legal strictness on surrogacy Priyanka Bhadoria, lawyer at Karkardooma Court in Delhi She says- Commercial surrogacy has been banned but it is difficult to prove it. Suppose, you go to watch a movie and if you do not get a ticket, you buy it in black. Even if the ticket is real, it will be in black. The same is the case with surrogacy. Clinics, brokers, needy women and couples desperate for a child will somehow hide it. Here, foetus testing is illegal but people get it done.
The government made a good rule on its part but a stronger network was created to break it.
Instead of completely banning commercial surrogacy, the government can register it itself, like it happens in organ donation. Needy couples should also register and so should those who want to become surrogates. As and when someone’s turn comes, they should be allotted a surrogate. Also, in return, the government should give some concession to the surrogate, like some facility in hospital or school. The couple whom she is helping should also pay a fixed amount. This will also end the role of middlemen. Otherwise, the way infertility is increasing, surrogacy cannot be stopped.