Maharashtra government sets up panel to draft IVF guidelines

government also aims to make it compulsory for IVF clinics to register themselves. (Representational)

In a fresh move to control the unregulated in-vitro fertilisation techniques (IVF), the state public health department has constituted a committee to draft fresh guidelines on surrogacy following recommendations of the Maharashtra State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (MSPCR) that had advised the government to form a state-level authority to monitor the infertility procedure and its misuse.

The seven-member committee will study the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) guidelines for Artificial Reproductive Techniques (ART) and submit its recommendations on the protection of surrogate mother and donor, and a mechanism to provide grievance redressal system in surrogacy procedures. The committee will also recommend a monitoring mechanism to regulate surrogacy.

The state health ministry’s move comes after Mumbai resident Shubhangi Bhostekar complained to MSPCR that her husband had abandoned her and her two daughters and sought surrogacy procedure by submitting a false affidavit that he is unmarried. Taking cognisance of her complaint, the Commission, in April, had directed the state government to devise a mechanism to monitor surrogacy and initiate criminal inquiry against the woman’s husband, Prakash Bhostekar, who was found guilty of forging documents.

In addition, the commission had sought formation of a medical panel to opine whether Jaslok Hospital, where Bhostekar underwent surrogacy, was guilty of unethical practice. “In this case, we realised several loopholes and ethical concerns in the surrogacy procedure. Each procedure must be approved by an authority and monitored to ensure such medical procedures are not misused. The husband wanted a son and therefore opted for surrogacy after his wife refused to undergo the procedure,” said Pravin Gughe, chairperson of MSPCR. He added that the Commission has recommended that the state government should allow children’s court to approve surrogacy procedures in Maharashtra.

A grievance redressal system will also be set up to address ethical concerns or medical negligence in surrogacy procedures. The state government also aims to make it compulsory for IVF clinics to register themselves. Dr Sanjay Gupte, Pune-based gynaecologist, and a member on the state-appointed committee, said, “Currently, there is confusion between ICMR guidelines and what central government has directed on surrogacy procedures. Until the union health ministry relooks at surrogacy, there is a need for further clarity.” Gupte was also part of the Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC) panel that formed ethical guidelines on surrogacy procedures and submitted it to the state government.

According to Dr Shivkumar Utture, president of MMC, a quasi-judicial body regulating practices of doctors, the guidelines were submitted to state government in 2014. “We framed guidelines because we got cases of surrogacy, and we found there were no guidelines to follow. The government had formed a committee to look into surrogacy procedures after our submission. But we never got any update,” Utture said.

Gynaecologist Dr Rekha Daver, also a member of the latest committee, said current concerns around surrogacy exist due to absence of an Act to regulate it. “There should be no misuse and therefore we need to immediately bring in some regulations,” she said.