Hyd police blow lid off illegal surrogacy racket

Hyderabad: Hyderabad City Police with the support of the Medical and Health department busted an illegal surrogacy and baby selling racket. Police arrested eight persons, including the doctor and owner of Universal Srushti Fertility Centre in Hyderabad and Andhra Pradesh.

The arrested persons were Dr Athaluri Namratha Pachipala (64), owner of Universal Srushti Fertility Centre, and associates Pachipala Jayanth Krishna (25), C Kalyani Atchayyamma (40), working as Manager at the centre, Gollamandala Chenna Rao (37), Lab Technician & Embryologist, Nargula Sadanandam (41), Anesthesia Specialist and working doctor in Gandhi Hospital, Dhanasri Santoshi (38), Mohammed Ali Adik (38), and Nasreen Begum (25), all three native of Assam.

According to police, the complainant couple approached Universal Srushti Fertility Centre located in Gopalapuram in August 2024 for fertility and IVF consultation. There they met Dr Namrata who after conducting fertility related tests advised them to go for surrogacy. The couple was directed to another branch of the clinic at Visakhapatnam for collection of specimens and were told that the surrogate will be arranged by the clinic and the embryo would be transplanted to the surrogate.

“Over the course of 9 months, the couple made several payments to the clinic and updates as to the baby’s health were given by the clinic. In June 2025, the complainant was informed that the surrogate had delivered a baby boy via C-section in Visakhapatnam and that they should pay extra amount for the delivery charges and collect the baby from Visakhapatnam,” said S Rashmi Perumal, DCP North Zone.

The DCP said the complainant reached Vizag and the baby boy was handed over to her along with documentation which showed registration of the child as having been born to the couple themselves, creating a false birth certificate document. “Overall, the clinic took over Rs 35 lakhs from the couple as consultation charges for the procedures. Later, the couple went in for a DNA test which revealed that the child’s DNA did not match theirs at all. They tried to get in touch with the clinic, but they were refused any documentation and were threatened, which prompted them to approach the police,” said the DCP.

Rashmi said that in an inquiry it was revealed that the main accused, Dr Namratha was conducting a large-scale illegal surrogacy and fertility scam. She began medical practice in 1995 and transitioned into fertility and IVF services from 1998. Over the years, she expanded into unethical and illegal practices, collecting Rs 20 – Rs 30 lakh from each client under false promises. “She, along with associates, targeted vulnerable women, particularly those seeking abortions and lured them into continuing pregnancies in exchange for money. These newborns were then passed off as children conceived through surrogacy, misleading clients into believing the babies were biologically theirs.”

The original parents of the baby were identified (native of Assam and living in Hyderabad) and the delivery was planned at Vizag. After taking the baby, a paltry sum was handed over to them and the couple was sent back to Hyderabad. On charges of baby selling, the original parents were also tracked and arrested.

A simultaneous raid was planned at Hyderabad and Vizag clinics, which led to several arrests. With the help of the medical department, the clinic at Gopalapuram was seized and large-scale equipment was found at the area which substantiated the facts that the accused was conducting IVF treatments, creating live embryos, doing real medical procedures without any proper license.

Gopalapuram police seized medical equipment and medicines being used at the clinic, mobile phones and digital devices, case records and surrogacy documents seized with help from Medical and Health Department officials. More than 10 cases have been registered previously so far.

Police said the investigation is ongoing, and further legal action is being pursued. The Medical and Health Department had cancelled the registration of the fertility clinic previously, but the accused continued to operate the place from the building and put the name of another certified doctor Dr. Suri Shrimati on the official letter pads of the clinic.