In North India, large-scale maternity DNA testing is planned to take place for 869 girls whom police suspect were abducted and brought to live with a tribe called the Banchra. The police believe these girls were being held and raised by Banchra women to be later sold into the flesh trade (see article).
Maternity testing is similar to paternity testing, but instead of comparing DNA markers between the child and alleged father, scientists look for matches between the child and alleged mother’s DNA.
The need for maternity testing is a bit different than paternity testing. A mom can surely say “I know I’m the mom—I was there!” The story above illustrates a unique need for maternity testing, and at DDC, maternity testing is often performed for family-based immigration cases, to provide needed proof if paperwork is not enough. It is also used to confirm the relationship between a birth mother and a child of adoption, when it’s often the case that they have been separated for many, many years.