Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Bill, 2020

December 2, 2021

The bill aims to provide for regulation of ART (Assisted Reproduction Technology). ART is used to treat infertility. In ART, the eggs are removed from woman’s body, mixed with sperm to form embryos. The bill was recently passed in Lok Sabha.

Bill defines ART

The bill defines ART as follows:

ART includes all techniques that are used to get pregnancy. The techniques shall include handling oocyte (immature eggs) or sperms outside the human body.
It shall also include transferring the embryo in to the woman’s body.
The ART services shall include the following:
Donation of sperm or oocytes
In – Vitro Fertilisation: Means fertilising an egg and a sperm in lab
Gestational Surrogacy: child is carried by a non – biological mother or surrogate mother

Regulates ART clinics and banks

The bill says that every ART bank or clinic should be registered under the National Registry of Banks and Clinics of India. The bill will establish the National Registry. The registry will act as a central database holding details of the clinics and banks providing ART services.
The clinics and banks shall become eligible to get registered only if they attain to certain standards. These standards are related to physical infrastructure, specialised manpower, diagnostic facilities, etc.
The registration is valid for five years.

Conditions included in the bill

Only a registered bank or clinic shall collect and store the semen.
The semen can be received only from males in the age 21 years and 55 years. The oocytes shall be received only from females in the age 23 years and 35 years.
The oocyte woman should be an ever – married woman. Also, she should have at least one alive child of her own and the child should be at least three years old.
The bank should not supply the gamete of a single donor to more than one couple (seeking service).