Bengaluru, Feb 27 (IANS) Following the scam related to an illegal egg cell (ovum) donation racket surfacing in Maharashtra, the Karnataka government has stated that it has asked officers to remain vigilant and monitor the activities of IVF centres in Bengaluru and across the state.

Authorities have also been directed to find out whether there is any link from Karnataka to the scam.

Speaking to the media on Friday in Bengaluru, Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao said, “Regarding reports of a Bengaluru link in connection with the egg donation racket, I have spoken to my officers. We have not received information on which hospital or who is involved. There is no clear information available at present. To ascertain this, our officers are trying to gather more information from their Maharashtra counterparts and our Home Department. They are attempting to determine whether the name of any individual or health institute from Karnataka has surfaced.”

“If anything emerges, action will be taken. Since the news has surfaced in Maharashtra, we will verify and conduct checks in Bengaluru and across the state. I have instructed our officers to remain vigilant about activities in our state and directed the Deputy Director to take the matter seriously,” the Minister added.

It may be noted that recently, police in Maharashtra’s Thane and other districts busted a major illegal egg donation racket and arrested three women accused of repeatedly exploiting economically vulnerable women and selling their eggs through IVF channels for large sums of money.

Investigators said the accused lured women with payments ranging from Rs 25,000 to Rs 30,000 per cycle, while the extracted eggs were allegedly sold for several lakhs to clients seeking fertility treatments. At least 20 women are believed to have fallen victim to the operation so far, with many subjected to repeated hormonal stimulation and surgical retrieval procedures that caused significant health complications.

The racket was being operated from a residential apartment and a sonography centre in the Joveli area of Badlapur East in Thane. The operation came to light after one of the victims approached the Chief Medical Officer of a sub-district hospital, prompting a police raid.

During the search, officers recovered photographs of hormone injections, sonography reports, affidavits bearing false identities, forged documents, and digital evidence of financial transactions from the accused persons’ mobile phones. Investigators believe these documents were used to conceal the identities of donors and present illegal procedures as legitimate medical processes.

Sources said the preliminary probe has revealed a Bengaluru link to the egg donation racket busted in Maharashtra’s Nasik, Nagpur, Pune, and Thane. Poor and vulnerable women were allegedly targeted, and their egg cells (ovum) were extracted and later used in IVF centres. As per regulations, a woman can donate her eggs only once in her lifetime due to serious health risks. However, the accused allegedly lured and forced women to donate their eggs more than 25 times.

–IANS

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