Quick Summary
- A woman doctor was arrested at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport on August 4, in connection with an illegal surrogacy and child-selling racket operating under the guise of fertility treatment in Hyderabad.
- the arrest is part of a larger examination involving Universal Srushti Fertility Centres situated in hyderabad and Visakhapatnam.
- Police had been tracking the doctorS movements before her detention. she is the eleventh person apprehended in this case.
- Previously, ten individuals, including 64-year-old Athaluri Namratha (Pachipala Namratha), the owner of these centres and prime accused, were arrested.
- The investigation began after complaints from a couple seeking IVF services raised concerns about serious procedural irregularities at one clinic in August 2024.
- Raids on both branches uncovered incriminating materials such as medical equipment, surrogacy records, forged documents, and digital devices; clinics were reportedly operating without valid licences while breaching national medical guidelines for embryo creation and implantation procedures.
- Police confirmed that further arrests might follow as they trace additional suspects linked to this network.
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Indian Opinion Analysis
This case sheds light on serious ethical and legal violations within India’s fertility treatment industry-a sector regulated under strict guidelines to protect patients’ rights while maintaining transparency around assisted reproductive technologies like IVF or surrogacy procedures. The allegations against Universal Srushti Fertility Centres reveal significant exploitation cloaked beneath a veneer of medical legitimacy.
As more arrests unfold during investigations, scrutiny over the operation raises essential questions concerning regional oversight mechanisms overseeing fertility clinics nationwide-notably weather lapses enabled unlicensed practices to flourish unchecked across two cities (Hyderabad & Visakhapatnam). Enhanced enforcement regarding compliance with official licensure frameworks could serve as a deterrent against such scandals reoccurring elsewhere across India’s burgeoning medical tourism markets benefiting reproductive care seekers globally.affirming##### .