Grandmother is surrogate mother to grandchildren
Anand (Gujarat), In a daring decision that
turns conventional relationships on its head, a Gujarati woman
in her late 40s has lent her womb to her daughter's twin children.
She expects to deliver her twin grandchildren around February
11. Rekhaben Patel (name changed) from this small town in central
Gujarat, 100 km from the state capital Gandhinagar, has decided
to become a surrogate mother to her London-based daughter.
Rekhaben's daughter Dharti Patel (name
changed), married to a London citizen four years ago, was unable
to bear her own children and failed to find anyone else to act
as a surrogate.
According to Patel's family physician Nayana Patel, who is overseeing
the process of fertilisation, Dharti suffers from Rokitansky syndrome,
a rare congenital condition that causes the uterus to develop
abnormally but does not affect the ovaries.
"Dharti and her husband Akash could have produced a test-tube
embryo in London. But they couldn't do so since they did not find
anyone to carry their child as a surrogate mother," Nayana
Patel, a prominent Anand-based gynaecologist and an expert in
test-tube babies, told IANS.
"Pondering over the situation it suddenly struck me -- why
couldn't a member from the same family become a surrogate mother?
So I told Rekhaben to become the surrogate mother," said
Nayana Patel.
"In a parochial society of India where millions of women
still live behind veils, and sex is considered as the biggest
taboo, accepting surrogate motherhood is the biggest challenge,"
the doctor said.
The couple also talked about their search for a surrogate mother
in London.
"We searched for a surrogate mother for two years but to
no avail. The surrogates in London were asking for too much money,"
said Akash.
Having failed to find any way out of the imbroglio, Dharti called
her mother in Anand.
"After talking to Dharti, I resolved
to help her out and contacted Nayana Patel," said Rekhaben.
Though Rekhaben has acquiesced into becoming a surrogate mother,
she fights shy of society and does not want to disclose her or
her family's real identity.
Her first reaction was that of horror:
"My first reaction was: 'How can I deliver my own son-in-law's
baby? No, I can't do this. But my other two daughters urged me
to think about it and I finally agreed for the happiness of my
daughter."
Rekhaben will declare her and her family's real identity only
after the successful delivery.
Six weeks after the delivery, a DNA test will be conducted on
the twins.
The first attempt to implant the embryo was made in May this year,
but it was unsuccessful.
The second attempt was made in June 12. It was successful, and
it was discovered that they were embryos of twins.
As D-Day approaches, Rekhaben is a relaxed woman, dividing her
time between sewing baby clothes, household chores and prenatal
exercises.
The Patel family has informed the British high commission about
the surrogate motherhood and the expected delivery to make the
process of obtaining visas for the twins easier.
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