Gurugram, July 19 -- The Haryana health department has busted an illegal in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) centre in Sushant Lok Phase 1 in Gurugram that allegedly operated a cross-border surrogacy racket catering to infertile couples from India, China, and Australia. Police said on Thursday they recovered 84 cryogenically frozen embryos prepared for implantation into surrogate mothers during a raid late last month. The centre, operating under the name Fertility Cure Centre, functioned in the guise of an ultrasound clinic from a five-storey building in Block B of Sushant Lok Phase 1, according to the FIR whose copy is with HT. It had allegedly been running for over a year, illegally extracting, processing, and storing gametes - sperm and ovum - without written consent from donors as mandatory per law, police said. According to police, the centre paid women from economically weaker backgrounds in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh up to Rs.25,000 to donate healthy ova. It also charged couples between Rs.12 lakh and Rs.14 lakh for surrogacy procedures. "The centre had a network of agents working on commission who identified unmarried women in urgent need of money and lured them into becoming surrogates," said a senior police officer. He said Indian couples living abroad are also suspected of being the centre's customers, according to patient details recovered by police which mention several passport numbers. Police identified the owner of the centre as Manju Sharma, who is yet to be arrested. "The five-storey building previously had an authorised IVF centre. But the previous owner sold it to Sharma along with all the infrastructure including the cryogenic freezing facility. Sharma then hired staff and two doctors and started her racket. She didn't procure any permission or licence to run the IVF centre from the Haryana health department. Instead, she procured a licence to run a centre named Genetic Clinic and Ultrasound Imaging Centre under Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagonostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act, 1994, which was valid from May 7, 2024 to May 6, 2029," said Gurugram chief medical officer Dr Alka Singh. Using online platforms, Sharma allegedly advertised infertility treatment services to attract Indian and foreign couples seeking surrogacy arrangements, said police. The centre's illegal activities came to light on May 28 when the chief medical officer's office received an anonymous tip-off via email detailing the centre's illegal operations. As vice-chairperson of the District Appropriate Authority (DAA), Gurugram civil surgeon Dr Ritu Nandal escalated the complaint to the state government. On June 27, acting on directions from the Gurugram deputy commissioner (who chairs DAA), a team led by the Badshahpur subdivisional magistrate raided the premises. Health officials, along with the police, conducted a five-hour operation. During the raid, they found several couples, donors, and potential surrogate mothers on site, health department officials said. Authorities also recovered documents, donor and patient details, including passport numbers of foreign nationals, financial records, and equipment used for assisted reproduction. Two ultrasound machines were found, but none matched the registration details submitted for the clinic's licence. "Sperm and ovum collected for embryo creation were stored in cryo-lock systems filled with liquid nitrogen," said a health department official. A register recovered from the premises revealed coded notations - such as "P" for patient, "S" for surrogate, and "D" for donor - indicating a well-structured operation. The chief medical officer said that Sharma, the centre owner, was asked about the codes who then explained it to the raiding team. Another entry marked "pickup" appeared to reference ovum retrieval appointments. Among those present at the time of the raid was an unmarried woman from Khajoori Khas in Bhajanpura, North Delhi. She had arrived to donate ovum in exchange for Rs.25,000, investigators said quoting her statement given to the raiding team. Police registered a first information report (FIR) on July 16 at DLF police station in Sector 29 under sections of the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, 2021 on the basis of Nandal's complaint. Fourteen people, including Sharma, clinical embryologist Sonu (single name), a nurse, a lab technician, support staff, and the two doctors have been named in the FIR. A receptionist, a sales representative named Tankung (single name), and a technician named Muskaan were also among the accused. When contacted, Sharma denied carrying out any illegal activity. "We only carry out ultrasound and counselling of couples. Health department officials are trying to frame me," she added. Singh said this was the first IVF centre to be raided and sealed in Haryana. Singh said the investigation was ongoing and would determine the extent of payments made to surrogates and donors. "We are gathering details of all the couples who were the centre's customers to ask them to take their frozen embryos to an authorised centre as they were not at fault," she said. A senior district administration official said that Sharma tried to mislead health officials to prevent a crackdown. "A lengthy and thorough inquiry was carried out in the case to establish the illegal and immoral activities before we raided the centre," the official said. Sandeep Kumar, public relations officer of Gurugram police, said they will take legal action against the two doctors involved, who evaded authorities and did not appear during the raid despite multiple summons....