The Health Ministry in India's Tamil Nadu state has ordered four hospitals to be closed permanently after they were found involved in the sale of egg cells of a teenage girl.
In India, oocyte donation is only allowed for women aged between 21 to 35, and even then only six times in their lifetime.
An oocyte, an immature ovum or an egg cell, is involved in reproduction.
Last month, a case emerged where a 16-year-old girl alleged that she had been forced to donate her eggs since the age of 12 on several occasions at multiple private clinics.
Police arrested her mother, Soumiya, stepfather, Syed Ali, and a middleman named Malathi.
Tamil Nadu Health Minister Ma. Subramanian formed a committee to find out which clinics were involved in the matter.
A total of six hospitals were found to have violated central and state government reproductive laws, Subramanian said on Thursday.
"Based on the inquiry report, we have instructed the joint directors of medical and rural health services to initiate legal proceedings against the four hospitals," the minister said.
"For the two hospitals outside the State (Andhra Pradesh and Kerala), the Health Secretary will write to the respective State governments recommending action," he added.