Digitalisation Of Child Adoption In India - The Legal Problems And Possibilities
Author: LawSphereX
Category: Family & Personal Law
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DIGITALISATION OF CHILD ADOPTION IN INDIA: THE
LEGAL PROBLEMS AND POSSIBILITIES U. Saranya, Government Law College, Vellore
Dr. Ramakant Agarwal, Nims University Rajasthan, Jaipur
INTRODUCTION
In India, adopting a child has long been complicated, time-consuming, and fraught with bureaucratic red tape. As a result, both potential parents and the waiting children frequently experience mental distress. India, a nation with millions of abandoned and orphaned children, must expedite the adoption procedure to guarantee that these kids find loving, safe homes. Acknowledging these obstacles, the government has made great progress in digitizing the adoption framework with the goal of establishing a system that is more accountable, transparent, and efficient. Despite its enormous potential, digitalization is not without its difficulties. Concerns about accessibility, data privacy, technology inequalities, and systemic inefficiencies still impede the smooth adoption process that is intended.
Furthermore, there are questions regarding whether a fully digitalized strategy is sufficient to manage such a delicate procedure because the psychological and emotional components of adoption frequently conflict with the impersonal nature of digital technologies. BRIEF HISTORY OF ADOPTION IN INDIA Adoption means a legal process that allows someone to become the parent of a child, even though the parent and child are not related by blood. But in every other way, adoptive parents are the child's parents. 1 Child adoption is a noble procedure that establishes familial bonds between a child and prospective adopters. In earlier times, adoption was typically driven by the desire to carry on family traditions and perform ancestral ceremonies, with an apparent preference for male offspring.
Families without male heirs adopted within their familial groups because of this preference, which was firmly rooted in the idea that a son was necessary for carrying out final rituals and guaranteeing
1 Central Adoption Resource Authority, Official Website, available at https://cara.wcd.gov.in/
salvation. Property and family heritage were preserved within the extended family through these intra-familial adoptions. 2 People were reluctant to adopt children from beyond their family or community due to concerns about maintaining caste purity and bloodlines. The stigma attached to infertility, which sometimes saw adoption as an admission of a couple's infertility, further exacerbated this cultural hesitancy and led to social pressure and a lack of transparency around the adoption procedure. 3 With the enactment of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act in 2000, the legal landscape started to shift. This law prioritized the welfare of the child over religious considerations and established a secular framework for adoption that applied to all communities. DIGITALISATION OF ADOPTION IN INDIA In India, adoption procedures were mostly paper based up until 2015.
Several socioeconomic, political, health and social care sectors saw the introduction of newer digital amenities in 2015 with the start of the Digital India campaign. One such area was adoption. The way adoptions are handled in India has changed significantly since the introduction of digital adoption platform called the Child Adoption Resource Information and Guidance System (CARINGS) by the Ministry of Child and Women Development under the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA). The technology promises to decrease delays, improve transparency, and lower the possibility of unethical behavior by uniting adoption agencies, potential parents, and regulatory bodies onto a single digital platform. Adoption agencies were able to upload information on potential adoptive parents and the number of children offered for adoption using the CARINGS platform.
Additionally, prospective parents were able to register, monitor their place on the waiting list, and participate in every stage of the adoption process. Digitalization unifies people, places, and data on a single platform. In India, this was the first instance of an increased application of technology in adoption. 2 Saras Bhaskar, R. A. C. Hoksbergen & Anneloes van Baar, Adoption in India – The Past, Present and the Future Trends, available at https://www. researchgate. net/publication/236005514_Adoption_in_India_- _the_PastPresent_and_the_Future_Trends 3 Sushri Sangita Puhan, A Qualitative Exploration of Adoptive Family Practices in Contemporary India: The Voices of Adoptees of Closed Adoptions, Families, Relationships and Societies (forthcoming 2024), available at https://bristoluniversitypressdigital. com/view/journals/frs/aop/article-10. 1332- 20467435Y2024D000000014/article-10.
1332-20467435Y2024D000000014. xml.
STAGES OF CHILD ADOPTION4 USING THE CHILD ADOPTION RESOURCE
INFORMATION AND GUIDANCE SYSTEM I.
Online Registration - The Prospective Adoptive Parents (PAPs) first register on the CARINGS portal by filling out the application found in Schedule VI and attaching the required files. PAPs are immediately given a registration number to follow their application after this registration is acknowledged. II.
Home Study Report (HSR) - Once registered, PAPs go to the District Child Protection Unit (DCPU) or Specialized Adoption Agency (SAA) closest to their home to commence the Home Study Report. In this study, a social worker evaluates the PAPs' suitability and preparation for adoption. Within 60 days of the document being submitted, the HSR is finished and shared with the PAPs. III.
Child Referral - Depending on the seniority and preferences of the PAPs, up to three children may be referred through CARINGS, with one month between referrals. The platform provides PAPs with information such as medical examination reports, child study reports, and photos. They can reserve a child for possible adoption within 48 hours. IV.
Matching and Acceptance - The Specialised Adoption Agencies (SAA) sets up a meeting between the PAPs and the child after the child has been reserved. The appropriateness of the match is assessed by an adoption committee. PAPs indicate their acceptance by signing the Child Study Report and Medical Examination Report if both parties concur. After the child is reserved, this procedure must be finished within 30 days. V.
Pre-Adoption Foster Care - PAPs sign an agreement in accordance with Schedule VIII and, within ten days of acceptance, place the child in foster care prior to adoption. While awaiting legal formalities, this time allows the adoptive family and the child to develop a bond.
4 Central Adoption Resource Authority, Ministry of Women & Child Development, Adoption Procedure for
Resident Indians, available at https://carings.wcd.gov.in/Parents/Guidelines-for- Adoption.aspx#:~:text=While%20accepting%20the%20child%2C%20the,Specialised%20Adoption%20Agency %20and%20the VI.
Legal Adoption Process - After matching, the SAA submits an adoption application to the District Magistrate via the District Child Protection Unit (DCPU) within ten days. After conducting in-camera proceedings, the adoption order is to be issued by the District Magistrate within two months. After the SAA receives the order, it helps to get the child a new birth certificate that names the adoptive parents as the child's legal parents. VII.
Post-Adoption Follow-Up - The SAA or DCPU does biannual follow-up visits for two years after the adoption to make sure the child is doing well and integrating into the family. The CARINGS portal receives reports from these trips. CARINGS functions as a centralized platform during this entire process and makes sure that all processes follow the rules established by CARA, facilitating an adoption process that is both transparent and effective. BENEFITS OF DIGITALISATION OF CHILD ADOPTION Enhanced Transparency and Efficiency - By offering real-time updates and tracking of adoption applications, digitization can cut down on bureaucratic delays. By guaranteeing that all parties involved have access to the same information, a centralized digital platform helps to reduce miscommunications and speed up the adoption process.
Streamlined Data Management - Data about children up for adoption and prospective parents can be managed effectively with the use of a unified digital system. Better matching procedures and reliable record-keeping are made possible by centralization, which is crucial for administrative and legal reasons. Improved Monitoring and Accountability - Features that track post-adoption conditions can be incorporated into digital platforms to guarantee the child's welfare and adherence to legal obligations. By encouraging accountability between adoptive parents and agencies, this constant oversight promotes the best interests of the child. Accessibility and Inclusivity - Online systems have the ability to reach a wider audience, including people in distant locations, because they may be designed to be easily navigable and accessible.
More families are encouraged to think about adoption when the adoption process is made better accessible by offering multilingual help and mobile-friendly interfaces.
LEGAL
CHALLENGES
IN DIGITALISATION OF CHILD ADOPTION Data Privacy and Security - The process of digital adoption includes gathering and maintaining private data, such as the financial, health, and psychological characteristics of prospective adoptive parents and the children. It is crucial to protect the privacy and security of this data. To protect the interests of all stakeholders, strict data protection rules must be put in place, and international best practices must be followed. 5 Digital Divide - Due to India's heterogeneous socioeconomic structure, access to digital technology is unequal, especially in rural and underdeveloped areas. Accessing and navigating the online adoption system may be difficult for prospective adoptive parents and other stakeholders in certain areas, which could result in unequal adoption possibilities.
For everyone in the nation to have fair access to the adoption process, it is imperative that this digital divide be addressed. Legal Recognition and Framework - The current legal framework, such as the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act (HAMA) and the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, may need to be amended periodically in order to fully integrate and acknowledge the constantly evolving digital processes, even though CARINGS seeks to standardize the adoption process. To avoid future legal disputes, it is crucial to make sure that digital adoption processes are recognized by the courts and are legally binding. 6 Ethical Considerations - Because of the impersonal nature of digitized system, there may be questions about how well examinations of prospective parents are conducted.
In order to determine what is in the child's best interests, social workers and prospective families must engage in conventional, individualized interactions. It is still very difficult to strike a balance between effectiveness and in-depth sympathetic assessments. The primary motivation underlying the passage of laws such as the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children)
5 Sahana Mitra, Saraswathi Bhaskar & Matthias Bode, Mapping the Digitalisation of Child Adoption in
India: Challenges and Future Possibilities, 47 Int’l Soc. Work 3 (2023), available at https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/03085759231193638 6 Dr. Virender Negi & Malika Chadda, Adoption in India: The Deconstruction of the Evolving Jurisprudence,
9 Int’l J. Law 4 (2023) (ISSN
2455-2194), available at https://www.lawjournals.org/assets/archives/2023/vol9issue4/9114-1690626159352.pdf Act is the wellbeing of the children; the implementation of the goals of these laws is limited when empathic approaches to digitization are compromised.
CONCLUSION
In India, the digitization of child adoption is a revolutionary step toward expediting a procedure that has previously been hampered by bureaucratic obstacles, a lack of transparency, and procedural delays. More children are finding loving homes in a timely manner because to platforms like the Child Adoption Resource Information and Guidance System (CARINGS), which have brought efficiency and accessibility that were before unachievable. The adoption environment now has the opportunity to become more open, accountable, and sensitive to the needs of both adoptive parents and the children they are intended for by utilizing technology. But there are ethical and legal issues with this digital revolution.
The difficulties of incorporating technology into such a delicate and human-centered field are highlighted by concerns about data privacy, the digital divide, the appropriateness of current legislative frameworks, and the possible depersonalization of the adoption process. The very efficiency and openness that digitization promises could unintentionally result in privacy and procedural justice violations in the absence of strong data protection policies and legal protections. The opportunities presented by digitization are enormous, notwithstanding these difficulties. With careful policy-making, ongoing legislative reforms, and an emphasis on safeguarding the child's best interests, India may establish an adoption system that is more effective, fair, and caring.
Achieving a balance between the advantages of technology and the moral obligation to protect children's rights and welfare which is the cornerstone of any adoption procedure, is crucial. In addition to streamlining procedures, digitalizing child adoption might guarantee that every child in need receives a permanent, loving, and safe home as India continues to improve its legal and technological frameworks.