Sex-change surgery in India |
The government of India is actively promoting India’s booming medical tourism industry, including by recently overhauling a special M-visa, now issued faster and valid for one year.The $3 billion industry is expected to more than double in size by 2020, a report published last year from the Confederation of Indian Industry says. More than 250,000 patients -- seeking everything from hip replacements to facelifts -- are travelling to India annually.The number pales in comparison to Thailand which draws up to two million patients a year, but the firm’s CEO Josef Woodman was confident India would become a future leader in the niche area of gender affirmation surgeries.The surgeries are performed by less than a dozen Indian surgeons mostly in Delhi and Mumbai.However, some foreigners might question India as a destination given that its own transgender community is vulnerable to discrimination.Known as “hijras”, India several million transgenders are often outcasts. Shunned from society some end up destitute forced to beg or into prostitution.Retired British violinist Rosy Mica Kellett decided to travel to India for male-to-female surgery based on glowing recommendations for her surgeon. It was also 14,000 pounds ($20,000) -- less than half the cost in the UK.
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