The Lok Sabha today i.e. December 19, 2018, passed the Surrogacy (Regulation) Bill, 2016, that aims at prohibiting commercial surrogacy with a voice note.

The Bill ensures effective regulation of surrogacy and allows altruistic surrogacy only for couples who cannot conceive.

The intending couple must be Indian citizens and married for at least five years with at least one of them being infertile.

The surrogate mother has to be a close relative who has been married and has a child of her own.

Moreover, the surrogate mother and the intending couple need eligibility certificates from the appropriate authority.

The Bill also provides for the constitution of a National Surrogacy Board, State Surrogacy Boards and appointment of appropriate authorities for regulation of the practice and process of surrogacy.