Govt to set up body to check illegal adoption
Govt to set up body to check illegal adoption
TNN, Feb 23, 2010, 09.19pm IST
RANCHI: The government has decided to set up a State Adoption Resource Authority to put check on cases of illegal adoption that has plagued Jharkhand for the last 10 years.
The decision was taken at end of a two-day workshop on "Adoption" organized jointly by the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA), state social welfare department and Action against Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation of Children (ATSEC) on Tuesday.
State ATSEC convener Sanjay Mishra said since the formation of Jharkhand they had been trying to streamline the process of adoption.
"Our efforts have yielded positive results and now the state government has decided to form a State Adoption Resource Authority to check illegal adoption," Mishra said.
He said at present middlemen helping in adoption of a child makes as much as Rs 2 lakh per case. In case a child is adopted by an NRI couple then the brokerage is even high, he added.
As a first step in this direction, the government will conduct a survey in all 24 districts and identify orphans in the of 0-12 age group. Once the identification process of these children is over, they will be handed over to eight non-governmental organizations (NGOs) identified by the welfare department to provide care to orphans.
"We will ensure that all the eight NGOs are credible and have necessary infrastructure and funds to support these identified children. The NGO will have proper health facility to take care of these orphans till the time they get a family," Mishra said.
The government has also decided to maintain police record of each orphan handed over to the NGO with complete details of their parents and from the place where they were picked up.
"In case the child wants to know about his parents after he becomes an adult he can approach the state authority and get all the details without any problem," he added.