SURROGACY LAWS IN A GLOBALISED WORLD

Infertility continues to be a substantial and pressing concern for married couples in the year 2023. Its ramifications extend beyond the confines of marital life, significantly affecting the mental and emotional well-being of those grappling with it. On a global scale, infertility is prevalent, impacting an estimated 8-12 percent of couples, which translates to a staggering 50-80 million individuals during their reproductive years. Medically, infertility is defined as a complex reproductive system disorder characterized by the inability to achieve a clinical pregnancy even after engaging in habitual unprotected sexual intercourse for an extended period, typically defined as 12 months or more.

In times not so long ago, addressing infertility was a formidable challenge, and the lack of viable solutions had the regrettable consequence of straining marital bonds, sometimes leading to the dissolution of marriages. However, fast-forward to the present day, and we find ourselves in an era where advanced assisted reproductive technologies have transformed the landscape of infertility treatment. These technologies have become a beacon of hope for infertile couples. Unlike just a few decades ago when they faced the bleak choice of adopting a child or remaining childless, the contemporary setting offers them a diverse range of alternatives.

These options include artificial insemination, a process in which sperm is introduced into the female reproductive tract under controlled conditions; in-vitro fertilisation, a method where eggs and sperm are combined outside the body and then transferred into the uterus, and surrogacy, a practice where a surrogate mother carries and delivers a child for the intended parents. These ground-breaking technologies have opened up new possibilities for infertile couples in 2023, offering them the opportunity to explore a range of paths to parenthood and realise their dreams of starting or expanding their families.

These paths and new path breaking initiatives all have found themselves in need of regulation both at national levels in India and internationally. Therefore, this book helps analyse various governments’ attempts towards the same.