Adoption agencies reporting 32 deaths come under CARA glare

PUNE: The state has reported 32 deaths from 32 adoption agencies, data for three years from 2016-19 submitted by the

Women and Child Development Department show. As many as 776 deaths were reported in the country. The highest, 124 deaths, were from Uttar Pradesh. The Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) has sought detailed explanations on the cause of deaths. Last month, responding to a question in Lok Sabha (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/Lok-Sabha), women and child development (WCD) minister Smriti Irani put out the data which said the highest number of deaths of children have been in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar (https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/bihar), Maharashtra (https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/maharashtra) and Telengana.

The cause of death, facilities provided at these agencies and the various issues plaguing these agencies will be taken up after the agencies provide a detailed report, officials from CARA said. Action has been initiated in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Telangana (https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/Telangana) where they have got the state machinery to shut down these agencies and even fine some for poor maintenance. A detailed report will be sought for Maharashtra. The state has 63 adoption agencies, the highest in the country. “We have had to close down two agencies in Uttar Pradesh and in Telengana we had to fine them for non-maintenance. Action against others will follow,’’ officials said. CARA officials said the state agencies must monitor the agencies in their jurisdiction and report to them. The government has made registration of all agencies compulsory. Over 8,000 adoption agencies are registered with the respective authorities for monitoring.

Senior officials from the WCD department said the government was all set to bring in amendments in the Juvenile Justice Act in the last Lok Sabha session. When amended it will make the district magistrate the competent officer for approving adoptions instead of the civil courts. The ministry says it will prevent long delays in courts and expedite adoption. “We will be reintroducing the amendment in the upcoming session and plan to bring in an amendment to the JJ Act for making the district magistrate and collector as the competent officer for approving adoptions, instead of courts,’’ they said. With the civil courts already burdened with huge number of pending cases, matters such as adoption keep getting delayed. On the other hand, district magistrates or district collectors have access to all departments will find it easier to seek documents or verify facts on the ground faster.