|
New
Delhi: There is a ray of sunshine in the dark gloom
of female foeticide and communities still discriminating against
the girl child in many parts of India.
According to the apex adoption agency in India, the number of girl
child adoptions in the country has been on a steady rise over the
past few years.
Anu J. Singh, member secretary of the Central Adoption Resource
Agency (CARA), credits this happy trend to a change in the mindset
of people at large.
"Whether it is because of social advertisements, movies or real
life incidents, the mindset is definitely changing," Singh told
IANS.
"People want to adopt a girl child."
For instance, 1,819 of 2,990 children adopted in 2008 -- both
in-country and inter-country-were girls.
In 2009, 1,436 of the 2,518 adopted were girls. The number did
come down last year when 2,638 of 6,286 children adopted were
girls. But there are reasons behind it.
"Adoption of a child of a particular sex also depends on
availability," Singh said. "So if a couple wants a girl child but
we do not have one, they are left with the choice of a boy."
The difference in numbers between 2009 and 2010 also shows a big
jump in adoptions in general.
"On the whole, I can say that the trend has definitely reversed
and now people want a girl child," Singh said in an interview with
IANS.
That the demand for a girl child is rising was also reiterated by
Amod Kanth, chairperson of the Delhi Commission for Protection of
Child Rights (DCPCR).
"There has been an increasing number of queries on how to adopt a
child, especially a girl child," Kanth told IANS. "People are more
interested in adopting a girl today and for me that is a very
satisfying trend."
Take the example of Rishi Wadhwa and his wife, Gayatri. Married
for eight years, the childless couple decided to adopt a girl
child four years back.
"Gayatri wanted a baby girl and I was all for it, but when after
eight years we realised that she will not be able to conceive, we
decided to adopt a baby girl; maybe it was God's way of answering
our prayers," Wadhwa said.
"It was a long wait, but we were ready for it. Patience is the key
word. And all of it was worth the wait. Mysha is now four and she
is an angel in our lives!" he added.
Bollywood actress Sushmita Sen set an example to many when she
adopted a baby girl, Renee, years ago. A single mother, she
recently adopted another baby girl, Alisah.
According to a report, about 600 children were adopted in one year
from Delhi-based Palna-a home for abandoned, homeless and
destitute children-and about 65 percent of them were girls.
"Adoptions come under the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act of
1956. We have some restrictions, like we do not let live-in
couples adopt because the sense of a secure home and family is
missing," Singh said.
"Also we do not let a single male adopt a girl child. People have
their reservations against these rules, but we feel that a girl,
when she is growing up, needs to discuss a lot of things that she
may not feel comfortable discussing with her father," she added.
(Azera Rahman can be contacted at azera.p@ians.in)
|
Comments
|
Quick links