Article Summary
As one of the few places around the world that allows commercial surrogacy at a relatively low cost, India has experienced booming growth in the business. In particular, the city of Anand in the far western state of Gujarat has become a "Mecca" for foreigners seeking a surrogate mother to gestate their baby. There is a hostel located here where fifty surrogate mothers are living, all under the care of Dr. Nayana Patel. Patel has helped close to 700 surrogate mothers deliver a child for 580 couples; she has been doing this since 2004. The topic of surrogacy is a controversial topic, and Patel holds a positive view of it. She sees it as a win-win situation - Indian women earn large sums of money to help their family and foreign couples are able to have a child. A surrogate mother is paid around $8000 US dollars for having the child, a huge amount for many of these woman. Madhu Makwan, a surrogate mother, said, "I've got a chance now to make my life. God is too kind." She was previously making around $2 a day working in the fields, and with the money she made she is now able to support her family properly.
Questions
1. Ranjana Kumari, a critic of surrogacy, calls the practice "organ sale." What do you think of this claim?
2. We talked in class about the discrepancies that occur over who is the biological mother and who is the adoptive mother. What is your opinion about this argument?
3. What are the moral issues at stake with surrogacy (ex: loss of human dignity)?
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