Ahmedabad: Abandoned on train, girl child flies to new life in US

AHMEDABAD: She was found from a railway coach at Kalupur railway station (https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/Kalupurrailway-station) as an infant in June last year.

When the entire train was empty, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) heard a child’s cry and had found the girl child

(https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/girl-child) wrapped in a cloth. As the police could not find her biological parents, the

child was sent to Shishu Gruh in Paldi where she grew up with other children.

After over a year, Kranti, now one and a half years old, will start another journey on Tuesday when she will fly to the US with her

parents — Shyam Mohan and Payal — along with her sister Aanya. The New Jersey-based couple had decided to adopt a child

much before they had their biological child.

The adoption ceremony was organized at Raj Bhavan in Gandhinagar where Gujarat governor Acharya Dev Vrat, state minister

Ishwar Parmar and officials of child welfare committees were present. The couple has named their second daughter Sia Kranti

Mohan.

“I and Payal met during our studies. My roots are in Kerala but I was born and brought up in the US. Payal has her native place

in Morbi, Gujarat. We always wanted to adopt a child — be it a girl or boy — from India.

Even after we became parents of Aanya, we initiated the process to adopt a child,” said Mohan, who works for an immigration

law firm.

The couple was happy when it was a girl and that also from Payal’s native place.

“We were constantly in touch with Kranti through video calls. Our association with India is going to continue and we will surely

encourage her to visit where she grew up and contribute in her own way,” said Payal.

Ritesh Dave, superintendent of Shishu Gruh, said that they are happy about Kranti’s journey. “The girl is resilient and would gel

with her new family seamlessly. It was heartening to know that the young couple had decided on adopting a child even before

they got their biological child and stuck to their resolve,” he said. He added that it was 2019’s fourth international adoption and

269th overall adoption from the facility since 2004.

.