Dia Hadid

Academics who've researched this industry say, as it exists, it's a disaster for vulnerable women.

That's Vrinda Marva.

She is an assistant professor at the University of South Florida, and she studied the fertility industry.

We spoke to three members of the regulatory board that oversees implementation of India's assisted reproductive technology laws.

They spoke on condition of anonymity because they're not authorised to speak to the media.

They said the laws were designed to offer legal clarity for the industry, safety for couples trying to have a baby, and guaranteed medical insurance and care for the women whose eggs were being harvested or who were acting as surrogates.

The law was meant to halt the exploitation of those women.

The board members we spoke to said they were not aware of the vast underground market that has emerged since these new laws were passed.

A senior member of the board was also not aware that in one case, in the northern city of Varanasi, a 13-year-old girl was lured into selling her eggs to one of India's largest fertility clinic franchises.

We met her at a charity that defends women who've been trafficked.

Her parents request we keep her identity anonymous.

They say their daughter's been socially stigmatised and she dropped out of school after her classmates found out that she sold her eggs.

She's now 15, and she says about two years ago, a neighbour told her she'd get $180 for her eggs.

She didn't understand.

Eggs?

Like a chicken?

But she says she really wanted a smartphone.

The teenager's lawyer, Krishna Gopal, believes this is happening to other minors, but there's no incentive for families to come forward.

The teenager's neighbour was arrested, but he says the police have not followed up with the clinic that extracted her eggs.

The clinic in question is part of the Nova IVF fertility franchise.