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Abandoned Children And Their Rehabilitation Process

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Content

  1. Introduction
  2. The Scenario
  3. Summary
According to Wikipedia, child abandonment is the practice of giving up one's parental rights and interests in an illegal manner with the intention of never taking them back or expressing them again. Children that have been abandoned are the most defenseless and frequently fall prey to violence, illness, hunger, and death. These kids face the terrifying risks of kidnapping and sexual exploitation without the protection of their relatives. Surprisingly, the majority of the 20 million orphans who are homeless or abandoned in the globe today are orphans. Many of these orphans have suffered from trauma as a result of seeing their parents brutally murdered or helplessly watching as they suffer from AIDS or malnutrition. Abandoned children must resort to eating whatever scraps are available and wandering the streets since they are alone and have no one to raise them. The future holds little hope for these orphans, who are emotionally and physically traumatized. We commit our time and energy to constructing educational institutions, health care facilities, feeding initiatives, and orphanages that have evolved into havens of affection, laughter, and hope rather than desperation.

The Scenario

90% of the 11 million abandoned kids are female. They all have little chance of finding a home because in 2009, only 2,518 people were adopted.

The Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA), which is funded and run by the government, and the ministry of women and child development were asked for comments after the Supreme Court took note of the statistics in a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) calling for reform of the state-backed adoption mechanism.

Senior attorney K K Venugopal explained the deplorable situation of adoption in India before a bench consisting of Chief Justice S H Kapadia, Justices K S Radhakrishnan, and Justice Swatanter Kumar.

The petitioner said: "Total apathy and corruption of respondents has led to the adoption process being reduced to a farce, and empowered opaque state-run children's homes and criminal private individuals to play with the lives of adoptable children and adopting parents, very often reducing the solemn process of adoption to a commercial transaction involving little babies." 

After the Supreme Court issued a ruling in 1984 outlining comprehensive principles for advancing the rights of adoptable children, CARA was established. According to the petition, which was written by Gopal Shankarnarayan, CARA had failed on every single one of its mandates, including monitoring and regulating placement agencies, promoting prompt adoption, avoiding delays and duplication of effort, and facilitating training and research in the adoption field.

"Families seeking to adopt are left languishing as they wait for months to be given an adoptable child, and the reams of red-tape along with the lure of foreign money ensures that more children are sought to be given to foreign parents than Indian ones, which is contrary to the norm," it said.

Children lose their parents due to armed war, extreme poverty, disabilities, and HIV/AIDS, according to UNICEF. As a result, a sizable proportion of youngsters experience parentless upbringing. Children who are not cared for by parents are more likely to experience abuse, exploitation, and neglect. Many kids end up being cared for in institutions. Children who get poor individual care in institutions may suffer from social and emotional impairment. Public childcare facilities house about 1.5 million children in Central and Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States. Over a million youngsters reside in residential institutions in Europe and Central Asia. There were 143 million orphans in 93 sub-Saharan African, Asian, Latin American, and Caribbean nations in 2003, according to estimates. With 87.6 million children, Asia has the highest number of orphans from all causes.

Children may be left without parental care temporarily or permanently for a variety of reasons, such as parental illness, death, or incarceration, separation due to migration or armed conflict, removal by child welfare authorities and/or the courts based on the child's best interests, child detention, or after the child decides on their own to leave home.

The child-parent relationship is frequently viewed in India as one of societal conformity rather than a child's inherent right. Therefore, it is not considered the responsibility of the state to give a child a family atmosphere when that child is taken away from his or her parent. Even though the state oversees adoption, there is no long-term foster care or any alternative care system in place in India.

According to UNICEF's estimation, India has 25 million orphans in 2007. According to another report, India has approximately 12 million orphans and abandoned children and about 44 million destitute children, yet there are just 5000 (0.04%) adoptions annually. Approximately 40,000 youngsters are housed in the facilities for minors who have broken the law. People from different socioeconomic backgrounds differ greatly in their knowledge of, attitudes toward, and intentions toward adopting children, which highlights the need for the state to promote child adoption and establish a system of noninstitutional care for children who are older than the adoption age.

Adoption in India comes under the provisions of three Acts and is carried out centrally by CARA:
  1. The Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act 1956 
  2. The Guardian and Wards Act 18902 
  3. Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection) Act 2000, Amended in 2006 

What is Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA)?

The Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) exists to provide every orphan, homeless, and relinquished child with a family that will love and care for them. The Ministry of Women and Child Development is currently in charge of it. In 1990, the Ministry of Welfare formed CARA. CARA was given the duty of upholding the 1993 Hague Convention on Protection of Children & Cooperation in Respect of Inter-Country Adoption by the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment. In 1999, it was given autonomy by being registered as a society under the Societies Registration Act of 1860. CARA was given to the MWCD with the passage of the Juvenile Justice Act of 2000 and its revision in 2006. Under the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act of 1956, the Guardians and Wards Act of 1890, and the Juvenile Justice Act of 2000, a child may be placed with a family in India.

Other agencies concerned with the process of adoption both in India and internationally are as follows:
  • Recognized Indian Placement Agencies (RIPAs) 
  • Enlisted Foreign Adoption Agencies
  • Shishu Grehs 
  • Licensed Adoption Placement Agencies (LAPAs) · Indian Federation of Adoptive Families
  •  Associations (IFAFA)

New Adoption Guidelines 2015:

New adoption guidelines for 2015 were released by the Central Adoption Resource Authority and the Ministry of Women and Child Development, and they became effective on August 1st. The 2015 guidelines have taken the place of the 2011 ones. Following the online registration process for adoptions, all adoptions are now centrally administered using the "Child Adoption Resource Information and Guidance System (CARINGS)". According to the new regulations, Prospective Adoptive Parents (PAPs) cannot be manually registered. Similar to this, no agency is now allowed to match or refer any child to any PAPs. Manually registering PAPs and matching or referring any child to any PAP by any agency will now be considered violations of the adoption guidelines.

hese Guidelines draw support from- 
  • Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 & Rules framed there under; 
  •  Hon’ble Supreme Court Judgements in the case of L. K. Pandey vs. Union of India in WP (Crl.) No. 1171 of 1982 and in the case of Stephanie Joan Becker vs. State and Anr. 
  • UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1989; 
  • The Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Cooperation in respect of Inter-country Adoption, 1993
The New Guidelines contains 6 Chapters and 15 Schedules. 
  • Chapter I : Definitions and eligibility criteria 
  • Chapter II : Procedure relating to children for adoption 
  • Chapter III : Adoption procedure for Resident Indians 
  • Chapter IV : Adoption procedure for NRI, OCI and foreign PAPs 
  • Chapter V : Role of agencies and authorities concerned 
  • Chapter VI : Miscellaneous provisions
Schedules:
  • Schedule 1- Certificate of CWC Declaring Child Legally Free for Adoption 
  • Schedule 2- Child Study Report (CSR) 
  • Schedule 3- Medical Examination Report of Child (MER) 
  • Schedule 4- Deed of Surrender 
  • Schedule 5- Online Registration Form and List of} Documents to be Uploaded 
  • Schedule 6- Format of Home Study Report (HSR)} for PAPs in India 
  • Schedule 7- Pre-Adoption Foster Care Undertaking} (Affidavit) 
  • Schedule 8- List of Documents to be Filed along with Adoption petition in the Court 
  • Schedule 9- No Objection Certificate from CARA 
  • Schedule 10- Conformity Certificate from CARA
  • Schedule 11- Post- Placement Report of Child Schedule 
  • Minimum Standards of Child Care in SAAs Schedule 
  • Adoption Expenses Schedule 
  • Timelines for Concerned Authorities and Agencies Schedule 
  • Format for Quarterly Adoption Data for SAAs
The new Guidelines have been issued for : 
  1. Greater transparency and clarity; 
  2. Simplify adoption procedure for in/inter country and inter-state adoptions; 
  3. Minimize delays in adoption process with fixed timelines; 
  4. Expand adoption base by setting up linkages between SAA and CCI to reach all adoptable children; 
  5. Enable PAPs to take informed decisions
  6. Introduce e-governance in adoption system; 
  7. Revise age criteria; and 8) Streamline inter-country adoption and exclude ARC Clearance
The following Authorities and Agencies are involved in the adoption process: 
  1.  Central Adoption Resource Authority(CARA); 
  2. States and Union Territories; 
  3. State Adoption Resource Agencies(SARA); 
  4. Child Welfare Committees (CWC); 
  5. District Child Protection Units(DCPU); 
  6. Specialised Adoption Agencies(SAA); 
  7. Foreign Agencies/Central Authorities;
  8. Courts (District Courts, Family Courts and City Civil Courts)
The following Authorities and Agencies are involved in the adoption process: 
  1. Central Adoption Resource Authority(CARA); 
  2. States and Union Territories; 
  3. State Adoption Resource Agencies(SARA); 
  4. Child Welfare Committees (CWC); 
  5. District Child Protection Units(DCPU); 
  6. Specialised Adoption Agencies(SAA); 
  7. Foreign Agencies/Central Authorities; 
  8. Courts (District Courts, Family Courts and City Civil Courts)
The recognition to a specialised adoption agency is for a period of five years, unless it is revoked earlier

 Stage I

Following solely the online adoption process, all adoptions are now centrally maintained via the "Child Adoption Resource Information and Guidance System" (CARINGS), in accordance with the New Guidelines (No. 9). In order to adopt a child, any resident Indian potential adoptive parents must register online with the Child Adoption Resource Information and Guidance System by completing the application form found in Schedule-5 and attaching the necessary paperwork. On receipt of the full application form and other documentation for the Child Adoption Resource Information and Guidance System, the registration shall be complete and communicated to the prospective adoptive parents immediately. According to the new regulations, Prospective Adoptive Parents (PAPs) cannot be manually registered. The District Child Protection Unit will make it easier for aspiring adoptive parents to register online, upload paperwork, and address any technical issues faced by specialized adoption agencies. The prospective adoptive parents' registration is good for two years. There are different adoption processes for non-resident Indians, Indian citizens abroad, and prospective adoptive parents from other countries, according to Chapter IV of the Guidelines.

Stage II: 

The specialized adoption agency in the State where the prospective adoptive parents are located then prepares the home study report of the adoptive parents through its social worker or through a social worker selected from a panel kept by the State Adoption Resource Agency or District Child Protection Unit, as the case may be. Within one month of the day the necessary documents were submitted, the home study report must be finished in the format outlined in Schedule 6 and immediately communicated with the potential adoptive parents. The social worker will conduct pre-adoption counseling sessions while putting together the home study report in order to soothe the fears and concerns of the potential adoptive parent(s). Evaluation of a couple's capacity to parent a kid not their own is vital to a successful adoption. Therefore, this home study and counseling are used to evaluate their suitability to care for an unrelated child. The Home Study Report includes records pertaining to the prospective parent(s)' financial and physical well-being.
Applications for interstate adoption from the parent(s) must be accompanied by a home study that was created by a licensed social worker employed by a RIPA/LAPA. The Home Study Report may be written by the appropriate Official in cases where State Governments have explicitly delegated such task to their Officials. Parent eligibility requirements outlined in Paragraph 1.1.7 will be followed. Among the accepted children who are legally available for adoption, the Agency will provide an appropriate referral. The home study report and supporting documents will be used by the specialized adoption agency to determine the prospective adoptive parents' eligibility and suitability. If any prospective adoptive parent is not found to be eligible or suitable, the reasons why will be noted in the Child Adoption Resource Information and Guidance System. If they are rejected, the potential adoptive parents may appeal to the Central Adoption Resource Authority.

Stage III: Following acceptance and approval of a home study, prospective adoptive parents will have the chance to view photographs, child study reports, and medical examination reports for up to six children in their preference category at one or more specialized adoption agencies through the Child Adoption Resource Information and Guidance System. The prospective adoptive parents may reserve one child within 48 hours for potential adoption after studying the child's images, child study report, and medical examination report. The Child Adoption Resource Information and Guidance System website will provide the details of the potential adoptive parents who have been referred to the specialized adoption agency. The agency will schedule a meeting with the potential adoptive parents to determine whether they are suitable for adoption. The adoption committee will be made up of the adoption coordinator, social worker, pediatrician, or visiting doctor, and one representative from the District Child Protection Unit. The specialized adoption agency will also arrange a meeting between the youngster and potential adoptive parents. Within fifteen days from the date the child was reserved, the entire matching procedure must be finished. The prospective adoptive parents will be moved to the bottom of the seniority list as of that date, where they can apply for a new chance when the seniority is due, and the same procedure will be followed in the subsequent chances, in the event that the prospective adoptive parents do not accept the reserved child or the specialized adoption agency does not find the prospective adoptive parents suitable.

Stage IV: Pre-adoption foster care: After the prospective adoptive parents have signed the pre-adoption foster care undertaking in the manner specified in Schedule-, the child will be given to them in pre-adoption foster care within ten days of the date of acceptance.

Stage V: Within seven days of the date that prospective adoptive parents accepted the child, the specialized adoption agency will file an adoption petition in the court that has jurisdiction over the area in which the specialised adoption agency is located in order to obtain the required adoption orders under the Act. The specialized adoption agency will submit the adoption petition in the relevant court of the child's district if the kid comes from a children's home that is situated in another district. The adoption petition must include all the paperwork listed in Schedule 8. Within two months of the day the specialized adoption agency filed the adoption petition, the court will hold the adoption proceeding in camera and decide the case.

Stage VI: Follow-up on adopted child's progress: For two years after the date of the pre-adoption foster placement with the potential adoptive parents, the specialized adoption agency will submit online updates on the child's progress in the manner specified in Schedule-11 of the CARINGS, along with photographs of the child. If a child is having trouble adjusting to their adoptive parents, a specialized adoption agency will set up the necessary counseling for both the child and the adoptive parents. If the counseling efforts are unsuccessful, the specialized adoption agency will try to temporarily place the child in alternative care.

Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act, 1956

Adoption is controlled by the various personal laws of the various religions because, in accordance with Indian law, it is a personal act. The personal law of Muslims, Christians, Parsis, and Jews in India prohibits adoption. As a result, they frequently choose to adopt a kid under the Guardians and Wards Act of 1890. The guidelines in this law that apply to minors under the age of 18 are outlined in the section below.

All Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, and Jains are governed by this law. Under this law, a child, whether genuine or not, whose parent(s) or guardian(s) were a Hindu, Buddhist, Jain, or Sikh is also taken into account. Under this act, a person who converted to one of these religions is also taken into account. Any person to whom this legislation applies is defined as a "Hindu" by the act. Any person who has not reached the age of 18 is considered a minor under this law. Any law pertaining to Hindu adoption and maintenance is superseded by this one. Adoptions are only permitted under this law if the minor, the giver, and the adopter are all on board and deemed fit. If his wife is still alive, of sound mind, and a Hindu, he may adopt either a boy or a girl, but only with her permission. If a female Hindu is of sound mind, unmarried or married but her spouse is deceased, mentally ill, or no longer a Hindu, she may adopt. A child can only be given up for adoption by its guardian, father, or mother. Only Hindu children who have not yet turned fifteen, have not been married, and have not been adopted before are eligible for adoption.

The adoptive family is not allowed to adopt a son if they already have a son, grandson, or great-grandson (only in the paternal lineage) living in their household. The adoptive family is not allowed to adopt a daughter if they already have a daughter or granddaughter (only of the paternal line) living in their household. The adopter must be 21 years older than the adoptee when adopting a child of the opposite sex. Once adopted, a kid is regarded as a member of the adoptive family, and all ties to the child's birth family are severed, with the exception of restrictions on marriage and inheritance of property. The right to inherit from adoptive parents exists for adopted children. A legally binding adoption cannot be revoked by anyone. Under this Act, it is an offense to bribe a party to an adoption. If a person is already married when they adopt a kid, their spouse will take on the role of the child's adoptive father or mother. If the adoption occurs before marriage, the spouse will be regarded as the child's stepparents. The adopter must decide who the adoptive mother and stepmothers are if there are several wives. Hindus are required to support both their legitimate and unlegitimate offspring under the maintenance section of the statute.

 Guardians and Wards Act, 1890

All previous laws pertaining to guardians and wards were superseded by the Guardians and Wards Act of 1890. With the exception of Jammu and Kashmir, it became the only nonreligious universal law governing child guardianship in all of India. Since these religions' personal laws only permit guardianship rather than full adoption, this law is especially outlined for Muslims, Christians, Parsis, and Jews. No of their color or creed, it applies to all children. An outline of the act is given below.

According to this law, anyone who has not reached the age of 18 is considered a minor or child. The guardian of a child may be chosen by the court or an appointed authority, who may also remove an existing guardian. There won't be any orders made without applications. Applications should be as detailed as possible about the child, the guardian, and the circumstances surrounding the guardianship. The court will set a hearing date after accepting the application into the case. Before making a decision, the court will hear the evidence. More than one guardian is permitted for a minor and his property. The court must act in the minor's best interests while taking into account the minor's age, sex, religion, guardian's personality, the death of the guardian's parent(s), relationship to the guardian, etc. The preference of the minor may be taken into account.

The child's guardian may be designated as the district collector where the minor resides. If a minor is married and her husband is considered fit to care for her, or if the minor's father is still living and is deemed fit to care for her, the minor will not be appointed. Although they are not expected to do so, guardians may be compensated as the court deems appropriate. A minor cannot be assumed to be another minor's guardian. A guardian is in charge of the ward's welfare, education, and support. Guardians may only relocate a kid outside of the court's jurisdiction with the court's approval. The crime of not obtaining authorization is punishable. Without a will or the approval of the court, which must act in the ward's best interests, a guardian of property is not permitted to mortgage or sell the ward's property.

The guardian is required to provide the court with a list of the ward's property, both moveable and immovable. The guardian may be permitted by the court to utilize any or all of the child's possessions, including money, to pay for the minor's maintenance. For abusing the court's confidence and failing to act in his capacity as a guardian, a court may order the removal of a guardian. A person can ask the court for a discharge if they no longer want to serve as a guardian. Failure of the guard to deliver the ward's property, failing to appear the ward in court when required, and failing to submit accounts are further punishable offenses. The court may accept reports created by its employees or collectors as evidence. A High Court can hear appeals of specific orders.

Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act 2000, as amended in 2006

The Juvenile Justice Act was passed by the Indian government in 1986. The Convention on the Rights of a Child was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1989. In 1992, India ratified the UNCRC. In cases where it is possible to prevent it, the agreement defines the child's right to reintegration into society without legal processes. Therefore, in order to comply with the convention's criteria, the government believed that the law needed to be revised. Therefore, in 2000, the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act was passed to replace the previous legislation. A individual who has not reached the age of 18 is referred to as a child or juvenile under this legislation. It lists two target populations: juveniles in trouble with the law and children in need of care and protection. This law safeguards a person's rights from their childhood as well as the rights of children now. Meaning that if a crime or incident occurred when a person was a child, and the juvenile lost the ability to consent to legal proceedings, the case would proceed as though the juvenile had not reached the age of 18.

Juveniles in Conflict with the Law is covered in the second chapter of the Act (JCLs). Where the State Government deems appropriate, Juvenile Justice Boards (JJBs) are to be established pursuant to this section. A Metropolitan or Judicial magistrate, two social workers, one of whom must be a woman, and a JJB are required. The magistrate must have experience in either child welfare or child psychology. JCL cases may not be heard by any other court than the JJB alone. High courts or the Court of Session are two venues where the JJB's authority may be used. The state must establish a number of institutions where the needs and protection of juveniles may be met when an appeal has been made in accordance with the statute. Every district or group of districts must have observation homes and special homes for the state to accept and rehabilitate JCLs. These houses may be established by the state on its own or through a contract with a nonprofit. Juveniles who are undergoing court processes are housed in observation homes. The JJB may find that the child's rehabilitation is not complete once the case's proceedings are over, in which case they may opt to place them in a Special home for a maximum of three years. When a police officer interacts with a juvenile, the Special Juvenile Police Unit (SJPU) must be notified right away and the youngster must be reported to the board. Juveniles are always eligible for bail as long as the Board determines that their release won't put them in danger or under the influence of criminals. The youngster will only be given into the custody of an observation home if he is not released on bond. The SJPU is in charge of notifying the juvenile's parents of the arrest as well as the probation officer, who will contact the juvenile's parents and conduct any necessary inquiries.

The JJB must conduct an investigation, and if they find that the child committed the crime, they may release the child after giving them advice and counseling. With or without a bond, the youngster may be released to his parents or legal guardians or placed in an institution. If the youngster is older than fourteen and has a job, the Board may additionally require him to pay a fee or perform community service. The probation officer must submit a social investigation report before the child can be released. Even after being released, probation authorities may still be compelled to monitor the youngster. A kid cannot be subjected to the death penalty, a sentence that could result in life in prison, or being sent to jail due to their incapacity to pay a fine or post a bond security.

Juvenile cases cannot be handled alongside non-juvenile cases under this law. A child cannot be declared "ineligible" or "disqualified." Because magazines, newspapers, and visual media are not allowed to publish material on minors, children are not exposed to the media. Children who escape the Observation or Special homes may be returned without a warrant or being punished. Cruelty to juveniles in the home or by anybody responsible for them is punished by law. Examples of this include assault and neglect. Additionally, this law has measures for punishing those who use minors as tools of crime. A person faces jail time and fines if they hire a youngster for begging, put him or her in a dangerous line of work, or provide them drugs or alcohol.

Children in Need of Care and Protection is the subject of Chapter III (CNCP). Cases involving CNCP are tried by the Child Welfare Committee instead of a JJB (CWC). The committee should consist of a chairperson, four additional members, at least one of whom should be a woman and at least one of whom should be an authority on children's issues. The CWC's mission is to safeguard children's rights by providing for their care, treatment, protection, rehabilitation, and development. A police officer, public servant, social worker, CHILDLINE, the kid, or any other member of the general public may present the child to the CWC. If a kid does not have an immediate family or support network, the committee may commit the child to a home for children or a shelter. Similar to JCL, CNCP has Children's Homes and Shelter Homes available. These houses may be established by the state on its own or through a contract with a nonprofit. Children whose families cannot be found or whose cases have been resolved are placed in shelter homes. Children who relocate from another region or state should be assigned to the institution and CWC that is nearest to their place of residence. After assessing the setting's safety, the system's primary goal is to return the child to his or her family or family surroundings.

The significance of rehabilitation and social integration as the goal of this act is covered in the fourth chapter. Adoption, foster care, and sponsorship are only a few examples of non-institutional options covered in this section. Children who have been abandoned or orphaned are eligible for adoption. The CWC may decide that a child is suitable for adoption and refer him or her to a government-run adoption agency for placement. According to this law, foster care is exclusively used to care for infants before adoption. Through sponsorship programs, more educational, nutritional, medical, and other services can be made available to families, guardians, and homes. Additionally, after-care facilities will be established to look after kids after they leave their homes.

A large number of supplemental provisions are found in the act's last chapter. The following are some noteworthy clauses. The law permits institutions that specialize in the type of care to accept children with exceptional requirements, such as those caused by a mental or physical illness, and provide them with the appropriate attention. In accordance with this law, the government may create advisory boards at various levels to provide guidance on the act's numerous implementation facets. A kid may be released to his or her parents by the JJB or CWC or granted leave in response to a death in the family, a wedding, a school exam, etc. The state shall establish a Child Protection Unit for the sake of carrying out this act, whose officers shall be tasked with seeing that the act is appropriately carried out. Each State Government is required to establish rules for this act.

 Summary

Children that have been abandoned are the most defenseless and frequently fall prey to violence, illness, hunger, and death. These kids face the terrifying risks of kidnapping and sexual exploitation without the protection of their relatives. Today, there are more than 20 million homeless or abandoned kids around the globe, most of whom are orphans. Ninety percent of all abandoned children are girls. Through institutional and non-institutional services launched by the Indian government and the voluntary sector, these abandoned children are rehabilitated. The primary service used to rehabilitate these kids is adoption, which is carried out in accordance with CARA's guidelines and primarily three Acts: the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act of 1956, the Guardian and Wards Act of 1890, and the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection) Act of 2000, as amended in 2006.
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