Adopting a child in Chandigarh has now become a step easier with the UT administration notifying the Chandigarh Juvenile Justice (Care & Protection of Children) Amendment Rules, 2023.
Now, the district magistrate has the authority to issue adoption orders that were previously under the ambit of district courts, thereby speeding up the process in such cases, be it intra-country, inter-country, relative or step parent adoption.
UT has adopted the amendments in the Juvenile Justice (Care & Protection of Children) Model Rules, 2016, notified by the central government in September 2022.
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.
“With the amendment in rules, it will take lesser time, as the district magistrate will be able to dispose of cases quicker compared to courts. The department will soon be appointing an officer to address queries of parents who want to adopt a child,” said Palika Arora, director social welfare, women and child development, Chandigarh.
So far, the waiting period to adopt a child aged up to two was around one year. In case of a special or older child, it would take more than a year.
She explained, “The Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) is a nodal body of the Union ministry of women and child development that facilitates adoption of Indian children, and is mandated to monitor and regulate in-country and inter-country adoptions. The agency deals with adoption of orphan, abandoned and surrendered children through its agencies.”
{{/usCountry}}She explained, “The Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) is a nodal body of the Union ministry of women and child development that facilitates adoption of Indian children, and is mandated to monitor and regulate in-country and inter-country adoptions. The agency deals with adoption of orphan, abandoned and surrendered children through its agencies.”
{{/usCountry}}In Chandigarh, Ashiana Children’s Home in Sector 15 caters to abandoned and orphaned children. Arora said in the past five years, 58 children had been adopted in Chandigarh and at present, 12 children were legally free for adoption.
The amended rules also empower the district magistrate, along with the additional deputy commissioner to monitor the functioning of agencies concerned with adoptions, such as the Child Welfare Committee, Juvenile Justice Board and the Special Juvenile Police Unit.
Another significant amendment in the rules envisages immediate investigation by the police in cases where children are being employed for begging and labour before registration of FIR.
In addition, any affected child or anyone connected with the child may file a grievance against the Child Welfare Committee before the district magistrate.