The second wave of Covid-19 has hit India hard claiming more than 4,000 lives a day. Children who have recently lost one or both parents to the Covid are facing an uncertain future.
With the increasing number of deaths, social media platforms have been flooded with citizens sharing details of children who have lost both their parents or the only living parent to the disease and pleading for them to be adopted.
Renni D’Souza Chairperson of the Child Welfare Committee of Dakshina Kannada advised that such posts for Covid orphan adoptions are illegal under Sections 80 and 81 of the Juvenile Justice (JJ) Act, 2015, which forbids offering or receiving children outside of the Act’s procedures, as well as their selling and purchase. Such offenses are punishable by three to five years in prison or a fine of Rs 1 lakh.
Explaining the procedure of legal adoption he said, When it comes to orphaned children, the JJ Act lays out a procedure that must be followed. If you have information about a child in need of care, call one of the four organisations mentioned below: Childline 1098, the district Child Welfare Committee, the District Child Protection Officer (DCPO), or the State Commission for Protection of Child Rights’ helpline.” As soon we get information from the hospital about the death of the patient that created the need for adoption, the child will be shifted to CWC after police verification. CWC declares it fit for adoption, and after that interested people can adopt them following legal procedure. Or else if any relatives express their desire to take care of the child, custody will be given to them for foster care after declaring them as a fit person, he informed.
He stressed that the consent of CWC is mandatory even for a close relative to take the child with them. Without informing CWC taking the child with them is also an offense, he added.
Further, he said, “We work 24 Hours for children issues, especially for Covid orphans. If any child needs any kind of care and protection just contact through 1098.” He requested “If anyone likes to adopt a child orphaned due to Covid 19, do it legally. To know more about legal adoption one can log on to www.cara.nic.in,” he added.
