ASSISTED REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGY (REGULATION) BILL, 2020

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Last Updated03/12/2021

The Indian Council of Medical Research drafted the first draft of a law to govern the massive fertility treatment sector in 2008. (ICMR).
The Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Bill, 2020, was tabled for discussion by the Lok Sabha after numerous twists and turns.
The Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Bill of 2020 aims to establish standards in the reproductive business and bring consistent costs in.

All methods for obtaining a pregnancy include handling sperm or an oocyte (immature egg cell) outside the human body and transferring the gamete or embryo into a woman's reproductive system.
ART includes Gamete (sperm or oocyte) donation, in-vitro-fertilisation (fertilising an egg in the lab), and gestational surrogacy (the child is not biologically related to surrogate mother).
ART services will be supplied by

According to the bill Every ART clinic and bank must be registered with the National Registry of Banks and Clinics of India.
The Bill establishes the National Registry, which will serve as a single database containing information on all ART clinics and banks in the country.
To make the registration procedure easier, state governments will appoint registration authorities.
The registration will be valid for five years, with the option to renew for another five.
If an entity violates the Bill's terms, its registration may be revoked or suspended.

Regulate ART services and safeguard women and children from exploitation.
To safeguard egg donors from repeated embryo implantation by providing insurance coverage (due to the health risks involved for mother and child).
To ensure that children born through ART have the same rights as biological children.
Regulate ART banks' cryopreservation (cold storage) of sperm, eggs, and embryos.
Make preimplantation genetic testing a requirement for children born through assisted reproductive technologies.
To verify that ART clinics and banks are properly registered.

Only a recognised ART bank is allowed to screen gamete donors, collect and store semen, and provide oocyte donors.
Males between the ages of 21 and 55 can donate semen, while females between the ages of 23 and 35 can donate oocytes.
A woman can only contribute one oocyte once throughout her life, and she can only have seven oocytes extracted from her.
An oocyte donor should be an Ever-married lady with at least one living child (minimum three years of age).
A single donor's gamete cannot be sent to more than one commissioning couple by a bank (couple seeking services).

A child born via ART will be considered the commissioning couple's biological child and will be entitled to all of the rights and privileges that a natural child would have.
A donor will not be able to exercise parental authority over the kid.

The National and State Boards for Surrogacy, established under the Surrogacy (Regulation) Bill, 2019, would regulate ART services at the national and state levels, respectively.
Boards will advise the central government on ART policy issues.
Boards will Review and monitor the Bill's implementation.
Boards will develop a code of conduct and standards for ART clinics and banks.
Boards will supervise various bodies to be established under the Bill.

For the first violation, these offences will be penalised by a fine of between five and 10 lakh rupees.
Any clinic or bank that advertises or offers sex-selective ART would face a sentence of five to ten years in prison, a fine of Rs 10 lakh to Rs 25 lakh, or both.
No court will take cognizance of offences under the Bill unless the National or State Boards or any officer authorised by the Boards file a complaint.