Infants sold for ₹90,000 each at illegal surrogacy clinic
A major surrogacy scam has been uncovered in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, where babies were illegally bought from struggling families for as little as ₹90,000 and then sold through a fertility clinic.
Dr. Pachipala Namratha ran the operation at Universal Srushti Fertility Centre in Secunderabad, which kept running under new names even after its license was canceled in 2021.
8 people arrested, investigations ongoing
The scam came to light when a couple paid ₹30 lakh for surrogacy but later found out their baby wasn't actually theirs after a DNA test.
Police have since arrested eight people, including Namratha, her son, doctors, agents, and some biological parents.
The clinic is sealed, affected infants are now safe in a children's home, and investigations are ongoing—including into the suspicious 2024 death of a surrogate mother linked to the clinic.