Centre amends surrogacy rule allows couples to use donor gametes (GS Paper 2, Governance)
Why in news?
- The Union government has modified the Surrogacy (Regulation) Rules, 2022 and notified that both gametes need not come from a married couple in case they are certified as suffering from a medical condition.
Details:
- As per the latest amendment, the couple can have a child born through surrogacy but must have at least one gamete from the intending couple.
- Also, single women (widow or divorcee) undergoing surrogacy must use self-eggs and donor sperm to avail surrogacy procedures.
Background:
- The latest amendment comes after the Supreme Court asked why the Centre was not taking a decision on the matter.
- The Union Health Ministry has now amended the earlier rules that stated that couples undergoing surrogacy must have both gametes from the intending couple.
Key Highlights:
- Form 2 (Consent of the Surrogate Mother and Agreement for Surrogacy) of the Surrogacy Rules read with Rule 7 was amended on March 14, 2023, to stipulate that donor eggs could not be used for gestational surrogacy of an intending couple. This has now been amended by a notification of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
- The District Medical Board can certify that either husband or wife constituting the intending couple suffers from a medical condition necessitating the use of donor gamete, then surrogacy using donor gamete is allowed subject to the condition.
- Single women (widow or divorcee) undergoing surrogacy must use self-eggs and donor sperm to avail surrogacy procedures.
Petitions before SC:
- The Supreme Court in 2023 received petitions from women across the country after it allowed a woman with a rare congenital disorder to avail surrogacy with a donor egg.
- The Centre had in March 2023 issued a notification banning donor gametes for couples intending to undergo surrogacy.
- The Supreme Court, in January, asked the Centre why it was not deciding for many women rushing to the top court with grievances.
Way Forward:
- Surrogacy is the practice wherein a woman agrees to carry a foetus and give birth to a baby for someone else without having any parental rights on the child.
- The latest amendment is a testament to the same that protects the fundamental rights of patients.
First Solar Project of NTPC Renewable Energy Limited begins operations
(GS Paper 3, Environment)
Why in news?
- The first solar project of NTPC Renewable Energy Ltd. (NTPC-REL) at Chhattargarh in Rajasthan has declared commencement of commercial operations of 70 MW capacity.
- With this, the installed capacity of NTPC Group has reached 73,958 MW.
Chhattargarh Solar project:
- The slated full capacity of Chhattargarh Solar project is 150 MW and is expected to be commissioned by March 2024.
- The capacity was won under SECI-Tranche:III and the beneficiary of this project is the state of Rajasthan.
- The project is designed to generate 370 million units of energy per year, sufficient for 60,000 households, while also saving 3 lakhs tons of CO2 emissions every year and conserving 1,000 MMTPA of water.
- This is adequate for over 5,000 households in a year.
Capacity of NTPC-REL:
- At present, NTPC-REL has 17 projects under execution, with a total capacity exceeding 6,000 MW.
- With this, the total renewable energy operational capacity of NTPC Group stands at 3,448 MW.
