By Michelle Lang, Canwest News Service

CALGARY — A 60-year-old woman touched off a national debate over medical ethics this week when she delivered healthy twins at a Calgary hospital — possibly making her the oldest person in Canada to give birth.

Family members say Ranjit Hayer and her husband have been unsuccessfully trying to have children for nearly 40 years.

Reports say Hayer, originally from India, returned there to receive in vitro fertilization with donated eggs after being turned down for the procedure in Canada because of her age.

Hayer gave birth to two boys, Manjot and Gurpreet, via caesarean section Tuesday.

The boys were delivered about seven weeks premature, but health officials said the fraternal twins and their mother are in good condition.

“My wife is very good,” said a beaming Jagir Hayer, the 60-year-old father.

“I’m very happy. God has given me boys, later in life. I want to throw a big party.”

Ranjit Hayer declined requests for interviews Thursday.

The case has sparked a fierce debate about Ranjit Hayer’s age, with some physicians arguing it’s inappropriate to treat a 60-year-old with in vitro fertilization, even if the technology makes it possible.

Several Canadian fertility clinics say they won’t treat women over age 50.

“We believe that people should have babies in their normal reproductive age group,” said Dr. Cal Greene, who treats fertility disorders at the Calgary-based Regional Fertility Program.

“We think parents should be around to take care of their children.”

Greene also noted that pregnancies over age 50 are risky for both mothers and their babies. Reports suggest Ranjit Hayer had several complications during her pregnancy, including gestational diabetes and high blood pressure.

But the couple’s family welcomed the births, saying they have been trying to have children since they were married nearly 40 years ago.

Daljit, Ranjit Hayer’s younger sister, said the children are part of a large extended family — so there are no concerns about caring for the babies, should something happen to the parents.

“(Ranjit has) always treated her nieces and nephews as her own,” Daljit said. “We always prayed for them to have children. It’s a very special moment.

The family is somewhat taken aback by the intense flurry of media attention — the story has appeared on websites around the world, from the International Herald Tribune in Europe to news sites in China — and are puzzled by the controversy.

“In Indian culture, children are a blessing,” said Daljit. “It’s very, very uncommon for a married couple to not have children.”

Medical ethicists said the decision to have children at age 60 is a morally complex one.

Glenys Godlovitch, acting director for the office of medical bioethics at the University of Calgary, said couples who do not have children face a stigma in some cultures.

But Godlovitch said the decision to have a baby also involves the welfare of the child, not just the parents’ desire for a family.

“My first reaction was, ‘Oh dear, are the children going to be OK?’ ” said Godlovitch.

The oldest known mother to give birth was 70-year-old Omkari Panwar, who gave birth to twins in India last year after receiving in vitro fertilization.

In 2006, a 67-year-old Spanish woman had twins, her first children, in Barcelona. That woman also received in vitro fertilization.

Before that, Romanian Adriana Iliescu was the oldest woman known to have given birth. She was 66 when she had twins in early 2006, but one child died hours after birth.

Also in 2006, a 64-year-old Turkish woman successfully gave birth to a boy in Istanbul.