Two girls from Bhagalpur found new homes in Spain and New Zealand when they were adopted by foreigners through the State Adoption Resource Agency (SARA) in Patna on Thursday.
Inter-country adoptions are not common in this part of the country. Of the 103 children cleared for adoption through SARA, only nine have been adopted by foreigners.
Susanne Gomez, secretary, agriculture department, Spain, adopted Preeti Bharti, 4, and Kathleen Mary Seymons, a clinical psychologist from New Zealand, adopted Meenu Bharti, 7. Both are single parents.
Officials quoting Seymons said she preferred India as it allowed single-parent adoption. Seymons had reportedly adopted another Indian child from Delhi’s state adoption agency.
The foreigners had to wait for months together to complete legal formalities for adoption. The HT, in its report on March 15, had brought into focus the legal hurdles delaying inter-country adoptions.
READ: 102 ‘adopted’ Bihar kids await court nod to go home
The adoptions were pending for long due to inordinate delay in getting legal nod from family courts. The Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) had to intervene in the matter.
“We have finally been able to unite the girls with their foster parents. Earlier, nine girls from other districts managed to find homes abroad,” Imamuddin Ahmad, director, social welfare department said.
{{/usCountry}}“We have finally been able to unite the girls with their foster parents. Earlier, nine girls from other districts managed to find homes abroad,” Imamuddin Ahmad, director, social welfare department said.
{{/usCountry}}Vandana Kini, principal secretary, social welfare department, said the children were selected through an online process.
The SARA has 21 registered adoption agencies across the state. At present, they have for adoption 189 children, of which formalities had been completed in case of 103 kids.