Date: 12/09/2022

Relevance: GS-2: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

Key Phrases: Review Of Guardianship And Adoption Laws, Juvenile Justice (Care And Protection Of Children) Amendment Act, 2021, Court-Related Delays During Adoptions, Central Adoption Resource Authority, Hindu Adoptions And Maintenance Act, 1956.

Why in News?

• The new adoption rules which require the transfer of adoption petitions from courts to District Magistrates have created a confusion over the implementation of the rules leading to a further delay in the adoption process.

What is the issue?

• The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Amendment Act, 2021 came into effect from September 1 which empowers the District Magistrates to give adoption orders.
• The intent of the amendment act was to prevent court-related delays during adoptions because of numerous pending cases.
• However, there is confusion in the entire system due to the requirement of transferring the cases from courts to DMs and the status of the court orders after several months of court proceedings passed on or after September 1.
• The regulations detailing the procedure to be followed by the DMs as well as defining the roles of various agencies and authorities involved are yet to be notified.
• Moreover, no instructions have been given to the District Magistrate’s office about adoptions.

What is the status of adoption in India?

• A recent report, “Review of Guardianship and Adoption Laws”, by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances and Law and Justice has highlighted that there is a huge mismatch between the number of people wanting to adopt children and the number of children legally available for adoption.
• As per the report, there were 6,996 orphaned, abandoned and surrendered children residing in childcare institutions considered adoptable, but only 2,430 were declared legally free for adoption by Child Welfare Committees.
• It is claimed that the waiting time for adoption has increased to three years from one year, in the past five years.

What are the ramifications of unclear laws?

• In the absence of an adoption order parents can’t obtain birth certificates for adoptees which impacts school admissions.
• They cannot claim health insurance for the adoptees.
• In case of inter-country adoptions by foreigners or NRIs who live abroad, parents can’t take home a child without a court order and a passport.

What are the issues with the new rules?

• It is difficult for a DM, who has the responsibility of the entire district, to ensure the timely disposal of adoption cases.
• Also, he may be susceptible to corruption and bribery.
• Policy intervention without knowledge of the ground realities has ended up as an exercise in self-gratification for those in authority and resulting in little or no benefit for the intended target group.

What are the challenges of child adoption in India?

1. Adoptive parents returning children: Disabled children and older children take much longer to adjust to their adoptive families and to a new environment in the absence of proper counselling to live with a new family.
2. Disability and adoption: Domestic adoptions of children with special needs are dwindling with each passing year. Also, the cultural aversion towards children with special needs results in most of them being referred to overseas prospective adoptive parents.
3. Manufactured orphans and child trafficking: The illegal organisations conduct baby-selling racket by creating legal paperwork which makes the ‘orphaned’ child available for adoption. Such children are referred to as “manufactured orphans” or “paper orphans”.
4. LGBTQ+ parenthood and reproductive autonomy: The invalidity of LGBTQI+ marriages and relationships in the eyes of the law obstructs LGBTQI+ persons from becoming parents because the minimum eligibility for a couple to adopt a child is the proof of their marriage. To negotiate these unfavourable legalities, illegal adoptions are becoming increasingly common among queer communities.

Way Forward:

• The way to remedy would be to ensure that orphan and abandoned children found begging on the street are made available for adoption at the earliest.
• For this, periodic district surveys have to be conducted to identify children who are orphaned/abandoned.
• It is true that there are always more people wanting to adopt children than the number of children actually available for adoption; it has been so historically, but the increasing gap undoubtedly has to be addressed.

Conclusion:

• Adoptions need to be dealt with very sensitively.
• For the parents who have been waiting for several years, this is an extremely emotional time.
• Children in shelter homes are also being deprived of emotional support and a family environment.
• We must never forget the best interest of the child, and, therefore, the government needs to work on a war footing to address the uncertainty in the system.
• No doubt, the country should take care of its children orphaned due to circumstances, but even as it acknowledges that institutionalisation may be detrimental over the long term, it should pay equal attention to the finer aspects of child care, and allow itself to be guided by a child-centric philosophy.

Source: The Hindu

Mains Question:

Q. What are the various challenges associated with child adoption in India? Illustrate the laws governing adoption in India and suggest the way forward to bring vulnerable children under the safety net. (250 words).