One of the rare but heartwrenching risks of surrogacy:

The premature baby boy born to a surrogate mother who died from complications on Monday night has been taken off ventilator and is “doing all right,” according to doctors. Meanwhile, the American woman for whom the Premila Vaghela bore the child reached the city and had a look at the newborn on Thursday morning, doctors said. The identity of American woman was disclosed only by her first name Helen.

The deceased woman’s family members, who live in a small house in a congested lane at the Amraiwadi neighbourhood in Ahmedabad’s outskirts, refused to speak to the media. Her sister said simply, “She was precious to us. Now we cannot do anything about it. Please leave.” Vaghela’s husband Karsan is a daily-wage labourer and the couple have two children of their own.

The newborn weighs a healthy 1.740 kilograms and the hypoxia is subsiding, said Dr Ashish Mehta, consultant neonatologist at the Arpan Newborn Care Centre, where he is being looked after. “He was quite sick to begin with,” he said, adding Helen was alone when she came.

Dr Pravin Patel, director of the Nova Pulse IVF Clinic where Vaghela was being looked after, said she developed complications during a check-up at the clinic around 4 pm on Monday.

Doctors there conducted an emergency Caesarean but she did not recover. She was sent to another private hospital, but could not be saved.

Police had sent the body for post mortem on Tuesday but the report is still awaited.

I hope and pray provisions were made in the surrogacy agreement to provide for Ms. Vaghela’s family as she made the ultimate sacrifice on behalf of her Intended Mother. While this will be small solace as nothing can replace a wife and mother, it at least will provide some financial security to Ms. Vaghela’s family as they struggle with their tragic loss.