NHRC notice to the Secretaries of Union Health Ministry and ICMR over allegations of dubious IVF clinics in Delhi. (05.6.2015)

PRESS RELEASE

New Delhi, Dated: 5th June, 2015

The National Human Rights Commission has taken suo motu cognizance of a media report that most In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF) clinics, helping childless couples to become parents, were operating in Delhi without any registration. Many of such centres do not have adequate trained manpower and infrastructure to handle these highly sophisticated technologies. Services provided by some of these clinics were highly questionable.

The Commission has observed that the contents of the press report, if true, raise a serious issue of violation of human rights of childless couples in the country. Accordingly, it has issued notices to the Secretary, Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and Secretary, ICMR calling for reports within two weeks.

According to the media report, carried on the 26th April, 2015, out of over three hundred such clinics operating in the National Capital, only 39 were registered with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). The ICMR does not maintain any data on the unregistered IVF clinics. The ICMR registered only 308 Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART) clinics all over India in the past ten years.

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