Medically reviewed by Dr. Shweta Agarwal, MBBS, DGO, Reproductive Medicine (IVF). Last updated: June 2026.
This page is educational information for intended parents and does not constitute legal advice. Surrogacy in India is tightly regulated; eligibility, certification and board approval are determined by the statutory authorities, not by any clinic. Individual clinical factors affect all outcomes.
Aansh Hospital & IVF Center serves Vidarbha and northern Telangana, with its headquarters and in-house embryology lab in Chandrapur. Surrogacy consultations are led by Dr. Shweta Agarwal (MBBS, DGO, Reproductive Medicine); the embryology lab is led by Senior Clinical Embryologist Aayush Agarwal, Ph.D.
सरोगसी सल्ला (surrogacy consultation) is, above all, about clarity — surrogacy is not available to everyone in India, and a consultation establishes honestly whether it is a lawful, medically appropriate path for your situation.
What is gestational surrogacy?
Gestational surrogacy is an arrangement in which an embryo — created through IVF using the intended parents' (or permitted donor) gametes — is carried by a surrogate who has no genetic relationship to the child. The surrogate provides the pregnancy; she is not the child's genetic mother.
This is distinct from older "traditional surrogacy" (where the surrogate's own egg was used), which is not part of the lawful gestational-surrogacy framework in India. In every lawful case here, the embryo is created by IVF and the surrogate carries a pregnancy that is genetically the intended parents' (or a permitted donor's).
When is surrogacy medically indicated?
Surrogacy is permitted only where there is a genuine medical indication, documented by a specialist. It is never a matter of preference or convenience under Indian law. A consultation assesses whether your situation falls within the recognised medical indications, which include:
- Absence of a uterus — congenital (e.g., MRKH syndrome) or following a hysterectomy.
- An irreparably abnormal or damaged uterus — structural conditions that make carrying a pregnancy impossible.
- Repeated implantation / IVF failure due to a uterine factor — multiple cycles where good-quality embryos consistently fail to implant because of the uterus, not the embryo.
- A medical condition in which pregnancy would be life-threatening — for example, certain severe cardiac or other systemic conditions where carrying a pregnancy poses a serious risk to the intended mother's health.
Establishing the indication requires thorough fertility diagnostics and documentation. The medical board — not the clinic — makes the final determination of eligibility.
What is India's legal framework for surrogacy?
Surrogacy in India is governed by the Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021 (read alongside the ART Act, 2021). The framework is strict and exists to protect the surrogate, the intended parents, and the child. The core principles:
- Altruistic surrogacy only. Commercial surrogacy is prohibited. The surrogate cannot be paid a fee or compensation beyond defined permitted medical expenses and statutory insurance cover.
- Eligibility of intended parents. The Act sets specific criteria for who may pursue surrogacy — including marital status, age bands, proven medical indication, and other conditions. Single persons within defined categories may be eligible under specified limits.
- Eligibility of the surrogate. The Act defines who may act as a surrogate, including age and prior-childbirth conditions and limits on how many times a woman may be a surrogate.
- Mandatory certificates. Intended parents must obtain a Certificate of Essentiality (establishing medical necessity) and a Certificate of Eligibility, issued by the appropriate statutory authority.
- Board / authority approval. The arrangement requires approval from the designated regulatory authority; this is a government process, separate from any clinic.
What is the medical (IVF) role at Aansh?
Where surrogacy is lawful and the necessary approvals are in place, the medical/IVF portion that intended parents may need can be carried out at Aansh:
- Evaluation and documentation of the medical indication, to support the intended parents' application to the relevant board.
- Ovarian stimulation and egg retrieval from the intended mother (or a permitted donor), and sperm collection / preparation from the intended father (or a permitted donor).
- Embryo creation by IVF or ICSI in our in-house lab, with blastocyst culture as appropriate.
- Embryo cryopreservation (embryo freezing) while the legal permissions and arrangement are completed.
The embryo is later transferred to the surrogate within a lawful, approved surrogacy arrangement. We provide the medical and embryology steps for the intended parents; we do not arrange the surrogate or the surrogacy contract.
Counselling and legal referral
Surrogacy is a significant medical, legal and emotional undertaking. As part of consultation, Dr. Shweta Agarwal provides:
- Counselling on the medical realities, the regulatory pathway, and the emotional dimensions — in Marathi, Hindi or English.
- An honest assessment of whether surrogacy is medically indicated and lawful in your case, including telling you plainly when it is not an available option.
- A recommendation to obtain independent legal advice for the surrogacy agreement and the statutory applications, since these are legal matters beyond medical practice.
What does a surrogacy consultation cost?
The consultation cost covers the medical expertise, diagnostic evaluation and counselling needed to establish whether surrogacy is medically indicated — it is a clinical service, separate from (and far smaller than) the costs of any subsequent IVF or the legal process. You receive a transparent, written estimate before any diagnostic work begins.
See /costs-emi for current pricing information. No surrogacy-arrangement or surrogate-related payments are involved, as commercial surrogacy is prohibited.
See IVF cost & 0% EMI for the cost of the IVF steps that may form part of the pathway.