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All for love

The number of Indian parents choosing to adopt has grown steadily over the past decade. But there are wrinkles, some legal and some institutional, says DIVYA KUMAR

Kalaivani Sadagopan had always wanted to adopt a child. She'd just assumed that it would be after marriage. But at the age of 32, the marketing director decided she didn't want to put motherhood on hold any longer while she waited for the right man to come along. That's how little Anjali came into her life.

Sushila Natraj was just 20 when she got married, and her two children were born quickly. But the desire to make a difference in a child's life through adoption stayed with her, and when her son and daughter were 14 and 11 years old, Sushila brought baby Aishwarya into the family.

Today, Anjali is an out-going 16-month-old whose grandmother can't imagine life without her. And Aishwarya is a happy 20-year-old sociology student who is her mother's pet.

There are a lot of reasons why people adopt, and there are thousands of such happy stories out there. Over the last 10 years or so, increasing awareness has meant that the number of Indian parents choosing to adopt has grown steadily, according to Rangashree Srinivas, secretary, Tamil Nadu Adoption Coordinating Agency.

However, the wrinkles and issues remain, some legal, some social and others institutional.

The legal angle

Consider this. Under The Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act of 1956, Aishwarya is still considered Sushila's `ward' after 20 years, because Susheela already had a daughter at the time of the adoption. Muslims, Christians, Jews and Parsis can only take in children as their wards under the Guardianship And Ward Act of 1890 since the personal laws of these communities don't recognise complete adoption. What this means is that their guardianship of the child ends at 18, and that the child is not their legal heir.

However, there's some sign that change is in the air. The 2006 amendment to the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act Of 2000 ensures that a person of any community, regardless of how many biological children of either sex they have can legally adopt a child. "This is a big leap forward," says Andal Damodaran, who is the vice president of the Indian Council for Child Welfare (ICCW), and former chairperson of the Central Adoption Resource Agency (CARA). "But the issue of inheritance has not yet been dealt with."

It might be even harder to change some other things, such as social attitudes. Kalaivani was surprised at the care that was taken in finding a child with a similar skin tone to hers, and was indifferent to the colouring of her baby. But adoption agencies often face the opposite problem. According to Andal and Rangashree, Indian parents are often particular about the skin colour of the child, wanting `fair' children.

They also tend to prefer infants to older children, and do not want to adopt a child with any kind of minor disability or ailment. "You're never going to get a perfect child— your biological child wouldn't be perfect either," says Andal. "I always tell parents to be flexible about the age, sex and colouring of the child, and not to be scared by the smallest of ailments before at least consulting their paediatrician."

Preference for girls

As it stands now, most older children and children with minor disabilities end up on lists for inter-country adoption or foreign adoption. Indian parents are provided with counselling on such issues, and change has been occurring slowly. "A few years ago, nobody would even take a three year old," says Andal. "Now Indian parents are willing to take children up to the age of five." Similarly, more and more people now want to adopt girls, says Rangashree, which is a boon since there are always more female children available for adoption.

Other things ail the adoption system itself, such as more children being `reserved' for foreign adoption by agencies because of the higher fees they would receive. Speak of adoption, and the spectre of illegal operations arises; chilling accounts such as those of the illegal sale of children can't help but send a shiver down one's spine.

But none of this is a reason to give up on adoption as an institution, says Andal, who has been working on adoption for over 30 years: "Research has consistently shown that there's nothing better for a child's development than being part of a loving family. It's up to us to correct the faults in the system."

SOME TIPS

Make sure you check all the safe guards to protect yourself and the child against fraud and disappointment.

Ensure that the adoption agency is licensed by the State, and that the licence is valid.

If the child has been surrendered, make sure that the 60 days available to the birth mother to change her mind have elapsed.

If the child has been abandoned, make sure that the Child Welfare Committee has given clearance for its adoption

PHOTOS: K. PICHUMANI & K.V. SRINIVASAN

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