Best Indian state to adopt a child...

A decision to adopt a child in/ from India can be stressful because numerous unknown variables.  There is no authentic material to read.  Well... wait no more.  Here is the information given for the first time by the Government of India in a report format (Jena Report) and we have broken it down in to small nuggets in a video format.  Hope you find this information useful to make an informed decisions on your adoption journey.  Happy adoption journey...

Adoption books

Here are the books that I was able to get during the conference

Conference photos

Here I am making my presentation "Promoting domestic adoptions"

This is conference hall during the lunch time:

Adult adoptees of India origin from theUnited States.

With CARA Secretary Mr. Yeshpal Dabas, CARA Dy. Director Mr. Jagannath Pati and CARA Chairman Mr. J.K. Mittal

Day two

First thing that happened today was meeting Dr. Jagannath Pati, Dy. Director of CARA. He gave me a book that he penned (I don’t’ think it is released yet) recently titled “Adoption – Global perspective and ethical issues”. He didn’t want money for the book. Isn't that nice??

It has been such a long day. Listening to so many speakers and some of them are outright disrespectful of others time. They forgot the topic that is been assigned to them and promoted their own organizations.

My presentation came and went in five minutes. As mine was the last presentation and they were behind by about an hour, they asked me to wrap it in five minutes, and I must tell you I was profoundly disappointed because I have been preparing for it for so long and I had such interesting points to cover but well….life goes on.

They had a session to talk about the new draft guidelines and that had seen some fireworks. To tell you the truth, even CARA doesn’t seem to have clear idea about what is to be done on some issues. I was able to collect some information that may be appropriate for some of you.

Question: If the process is going to be centralized and CARA refers to a placement agency, what happens if the receiving agency doesn’t like the agency that’s been referred?

Answer: Enlisted Foreign Adoption Agencies (EFAA) will send the photocopy of the dossier to the CARA, which will in turn be sent to a Recognized Indian Placement Agency (RIPA). EFAA will send the original dossier to the referred agency directly. But if the EFAA doesn’t like the referred RIPA, then they can ask CARA to change it.

I have my own questions on this: When EFFA decides to change the agency, doesn’t that delay the process?

Question: What is the tentative date for the new draft guidelines to be implemented?
Answer: January 1st, 2008.

Information on donations: You’re not allowed to donate towards infrastructure of any kind but for family preservation efforts (such as foster care). Donations cannot be made for the first year after one’s adoption. Donations of any kind must be informed to CARA.

I have my own question on this: How does CARA know when someone receives a donation and doesn’t inform? How does CARA know when someone receives a donation earlier than one year?

We had an event with adult adoptees. Two are from Oregon and one from Nebraska. They had very nice things to say about their respective families. One of them is a person with special needs but people were quite thrilled to hear she say that she is a post-graduate in rehabilitation studies. Unfortunately everything was running behind the schedule, they didn’t allow anyone to ask them any questions. It was unfortunate.

RN

From the horse's mouth

Here is an informal interview I had with the Chairman of CARA during the lunch time:


1. Question: When do the new guidelines are expected to be implemented?
Answer: New guidelines are ready and we are waiting for any new ideas that will be floated in this conference for us to incorporate. If we don’t get any new ideas, the draft guidelines will be implemented as quickly as possible.

2. Question: New guidelines say that the dossier is to be sent directly to CARA. Will that delay the process of adoption?
Answer: No. We are planning to hire more staff to do that work.

3. Question: Under the new draft guidelines in India and US ratifying the Hague convention, do you think Independent adoptions will be allowed to continue?
Answer: No. They will not be allowed.

(I thought he may not have understood my question and I double-checked the question with the representative of Asst. Secretary of State for Consular Affairs, USA. He reasoned that under the new draft guidelines, CARA does not want the prospective adoptive parents (PAP’s) to have no contact of whatsoever with the adoption agency. Under the Independent Adoption, PAP’s ought to find their own agency and a child. This argument seems to make sense and I have a feeling that Independent Adoptions may be coming to an end.

4. Question: When the new guidelines come into play, do these guidelines come into play for the new PAP’s or also for those that are already in the process?
Answer: Everyone.

(When grilled hard he did answer that they will allow those that are already in the process to continue with the old guidelines). Point in short – No one exactly seems to know what is going to happen.

5. Question: In India can those families that have adopted under guardianship act which doesn't give parental right readopt their children under JJ Act which gives complete parental rights?

Answer: Yes, they can

Highlights of US Asst. Secretary of State speech.

By Ms. Maura Harty
Asst Secretary of State for Consular Affairs, USA

U.S. believes in Hague adoption convention because it is a good model.
We support the convention because:

1. It is flexible and transparent.
2. It recognizes inter-country adoption as a valuable option.
3. It recognizes all of us (organizations in sending/ receiving countries) have a role to play to get it right.

US is committed to ratifying the convention, hopefully by end of this year.

Even if one inter-country adoption is failed, we have failed in our sacred obligation.

Later this year, US will deposit the instruments of ratification.

This is first federal level law regulating adoptions.

There will be one common email address to address your queries and that will be adoptionusa@state.gov.

Entire speech of CARA Chairman

It gives me great pleasure and pride to welcome all Delegates to the 2nd International Conference on Adoption, organized by CARA. I am very positive about the outcome of the conference, which is being organized after a span of four years. We have participation from our associated agencies and subject experts from different parts of the globe and certainly, the deliberations will be meaningful for further streamlining the programme in the country.

Now, it is a changed environment altogether. If you go by adoption statistics, it may not say so, but if you go by steps to streamline adoption scenario in the country and number of PAP’s approaching adoption agencies for domestic adoption, certainly, you will feel the difference. We have more parents in the queue to adopt and less children within the country. With recent legislation's addressing issues on child rights and rehabilitation of children in need of care and protection, we are in a better situation to address issues of safeguards for most vulnerable children. We have streamlined our adoption programme in the country to a large extent, but much remains to be accomplished.

In case of inter-country adoption, we need more transparency across adoption process, which has already been reiterated, by Honorable Minister and Secretary, Ministry of Women and Child Development during recent Annual Meet organized by CARA. Thus central authorities both in sending and receiving countries have to work together and implement various principles as envisaged under Hague Convention on Inter-country Adoption more stringently. The Convention provides for responsibilities and tasks to be shared between the country of origin and the receiving country, while respecting organizational diversities and national legislation. One of its basic premises is that adoption is not an individual affair, which can be left exclusively to the private agencies. Procedures for inter-country adoption should ultimately be the responsibility of the countries involved, which must guarantee that adoption corresponds to the child’s best interest and his or her fundamental rights.

We have gaps and challenges, which have to be addressed. We are in the process of finalizing our new Guidelines and upon its implementation, we shall have more adoptable children in the adoption loop, more transparency across adoption process and more importantly, such children shall have adequate safeguards. While Honorable Minister has assured that adoption services to be revamped both in qualitative and quantitative terms, I seek your full cooperation in this regard

With over 8 years of experience as an autonomous body, we have understood that for expansion of programmes in non-programmes states and to simultaneously revamp programmes in states where there is already a formal adoption programme, we need paradigm shifts in our approach.

We need more adoptable children in the adoption loop and this is possible only through active involvement of states. Recently, CARA has collected some data about LAPA’s (Licensed Adoption Placement Agencies) with the help of State Governments and these agencies place children in domestic adoption. These agencies do not get grants from central Government. We are also trying to reach all LAPAs directly from CARA through our quarterly newsletter and hopefully, the adoption figures will increase.

We need active participation of States in terms arresting large number of illegal adoption through nursing homes/ hospitals, recognition of at least one adoption agency for reach district and setting up of CWC in each district for having single window system as far as source of such children is concerned. We need posting of data from State Governments to CARA on quarterly basis for preparing centralized data on such children.

While we are regularly briefed by our member agencies about delay in issuance of court orders, I would like to quote a recent judgment of Bombay High Court which is really inspiring for all of us. A Bench of Bombay High Court in a Family Court Appeal Case (# 34 o f2007) has reiterated in a case of inter-country adoption in the way the Supreme Court pronounced its landmark judgment in L.K. Pandey vs Union of India case in WP # 1171 of 1982 that the cases of most vulnerable category of children need to be expedited.

“__________________________ These petitions deal with lives of innocent, fragile, infant children. They are either destitute or abandoned by their parents. The children are required to be adopted and taken by the adoptive parents expeditiously after preliminary requirements are completed. Any delay on the part of any authority, including judicial officers, results in delayed bonding with their adoptive families and consequently their overall welfare is prejudicially affected. We may repeat that the court taking adoption petitions shall only consider the financial and cultural background of the adoptive parents and NOC of CARA when disposing off adoption petitions. Once a petition for adoption is brought before any court, it is the bounden duty of the court to take up on the date of hearing itself and to give the adoptive child a home unless the parents are found unfit for the role of being adoptive parents”.

In fact, we need an open policy. Prospective adoptive parents in India should be able to adopt from any part of the country where as in case of inter-country adoption, any foreign agency/ central authority can deal with any Indian agency without compromising the best interest of child.

Over the years, our inter-country adoption programmes has largely proved to be successful. Children placed in inter-country adoption do well and CARA receives regular progress reports about such children placed in inter-country adoption. Therefore, institutionalization must not be preferred if a child is able to find a loving and caring family. Over the years, we have observed that tie-ups between Indian agencies and foreign agencies have not served well; it has not been able to increase adoptions. We basically believe that adoption dossiers should be marked to such agencies where children are available. We also strongly believe that when a child is proposed for inter-country adoption, state government should be involved as the State is the guardian of such children but this should not delay the process.

As far as central authorities/ government departments are concerned, I have to say that we see professional fees differ from one agency to other even within a receiving country while it is expected that such fees should be uniform.

As you’ll aware, there has been a marked change in attitude among Indian couples aspiring to adopt a child. It is not just males, there is queue for girl children too. But old prejudices die hard. We have a long way to go. These children need us. I congratulate Non-Government organization in the filed, that have been working for the cause so far and I solicit all your cooperation to reorganize adoption system in the country. We have to encourage particularly sponsorship and family foster care where such efforts can bring real difference in family preservation and restoration efforts.

1. Our vision is to expand the programme to every district in the country, maintain an online reporting system about all such children and enable retrieval of status of application of prospective adoptive parents with a long ID and password with the help of IT application at CARA. This tracking system will help the foreign agencies/ central authorities to pass important information to their prospective adopters.
2. We desire that every adoption agency in the country should be connected to CARA. Thus we have initiated our first quarterly newsletter for circulation amongst all adoption agencies in the country. We shall improve the newsletter qualitatively with feedback from partner agencies and states.A
3. As far as training and development activities are concerned, we have around 30 programs identified for the current year with the help of a training and development committee. We have greater need of professional social workers now. Once the Ministry strengthens CARA, we shall take up a certificate course on non-institutional care in partnership with reputed institutions in the country. In this regard, CARA has initiated a meeting with different school of social work in Mumbai.
4. Finally, we require mandated reporting system from States to CARA more children in the adoption loop with the help of state level child protection units, quality standards and indicators for professionalzing child care system particularly in adoption agencies.

In my view, child is like a flower that grows in any season and on any soil. But as flowers cannot be left to themselves to grow without the help of a gardener, so does a child in the institution who can only grow with tender care of a loving and caring family. Let all of us work together with mutual trust and harmony in the best interest of children.

My I extend a very warm welcome to all of you once again and wish you a pleasant, unforgettable and successful participation.

(J.K. Mittal)

Chairman - CARA

Day one

I reached the spot about 30 minutes before to meet people. I was able to meet Terry Bell of AIAA, Dr. Vinita Bhargava whom I had interviewed for COLORS newsletter two years ago and Bharti Dasgupta of CSA. Our program started off at 9:30 am and pretty much stayed on the clock. I purchased “Adoption in India” book from Dr. Vinita Bhargava. By the way, she is the author of that book.

My laptop wouldn’t work with the hotel’s Internet and I have to depend on their office internet. Guess what? My voice recorder that I brought also stopped working and I am frustrated. Doen't that sound like Murphy's law though??

For lunch we had yummy food all around and about the speakers, we had some good speakers and some not so good speakers. Over all the day went off well and I must say that there are somethings that I had learnt today. During the lunchtime I caught the CARA chairman alone and I shot him few quick questions as he was running around with organizing things for the conference. I enjoyed listening to Asst. Secretary of State Ms. Maura Harty on "Hauge Convention in the US" and Dr. Aloma Lobo on "Preparing children with special needs". She brought many to tears.

There was a presentation by this Dutch professor who made a short film on an Indian adoptee Rene. She had issues growing up but at the end it was all-good and she grew up to be a lovely individual who says “life is what you make of”.

Well, my presentation is tomorrow and I am already sweating in my pants. I practiced my presentation for a while last night and I am going to my room to do it again to be ready for tomorrow. Say a prayer for me, would you?

Ruby Nakka

Minister (Secretary) of Women and Child Development address

Highlights of address by Smt. Renuka Chowdary:

1. Historically, most of the Indian adoptions took place within the family for various cultural reasons but they were done outside the purview of the law but in an organized society like India we need directions, which are set forth by policies.
2. No agency is above the interests of the child and transparency must prevail at all costs.
3. Ministry of Women and Child Development is going to introduce ICPS (Integrated Child Protection Scheme) during the 11th five-year plan. This policy will deal with all the child issues including orphaned and abandoned.
4. In an effort to simplify the procedure, and to bring in more transparency into the system, major change that is envisaged in the guidelines is to receive dossier of PAP’s directly to CARA so as to help us to enable all of you to have a tear free and happy process of adoption rather than running around in circles.

CARA Chairman address

Highlights of address by CARA Chairperson:

1. There are more Indian parents wanting to adopt now than before, hence driving the demand more than the supply.
2. Chairperson called for more transparency in Inter-Country adoptions.
3. Chairperson called upon states to take up responsibility to bring in more children into the adoption loop.
4. CARA is trying to stay in touch with all the adoption agencies in India through a quarterly newsletterly.
5. CARA will work towards having one adoption agency in each district and a CWC to create a single window system to promote adoptions in India.
6. Prospective adoptive parents of India and of foreign country will be able to adopt from any agency in India where there are children available. (This may be in reference to central processing of dossier)
7. Fee disparity and nexus of adoption agencies in Inter-Country adoptions came in for criticism.
8. CARA is working towards having a secure online reporting system.

CARA Inaugration

Well I reached the spot by 4:30 PM and by then registration had began. I collected my handout and the name tag to go to into the conference hall. I walked around meeting so many people I had communicated only online and never met them. I had gotten to meet Judy Kloper, Deb Drier, Beth Peterson, and of course my adoption agency representative and our family friend Jynger Robters. I also met lot of Indian friends Aloma Lobo, Nomita Chandy, Anju of Kolkata and Radha Nagesh. I could only say hello to Dr. Jagannath Pati and J.K. Mittal of CARA as they were so busy organizing the conference.

Jynger and I sat together and caught with lot of things till 6:30 PM. By then our Chief Guest arrived and the program began. It was a quick and a simple program. After the program got over, there was cultural program followed by Dinner.

Conference registration in the lobby:

Conference hall decked up in lights:

The podium of the conference:

Cultural program:

Today is the CARA conference

Today is 8th of October and that means today is the inauguration of the 2nd International Adoption Conference held by CARA. It is the first conference that I had ever attendee hosted by CARA and I really excited about it.

I saw a big billboard of CARA conference right at the entrance of the hotel. I walked my way to the Banquet hall where the conference is to be held, and it appears that there are 300 invited guests (by the count of chairs).

I took some pictures for you to look at and I will update with more as the day goes on. Hope you enjoy them.



This is the podium of the conference (sorry for the poor lighting)


This is the seating of the conference (sorry for the poor lighting)






Here is the billboard of the conference at the entrance of the venue (The Ashok)

I reached New Delhi

I reached New Delhi this afternoon around 2:00 PM. It is quite nice in New Delhi compared to where I am coming from in India. I hope to update you all about the conference on a regular basis so please check back the blog.

Tomorrow evening (that will be Monday morning for the US residents) is the inauguration and actual conference begins on Tuesday and ends on Wednesday.

Ruby

CARA Conference # 2

If you're interested in following the upcoming CARA conference, CARA has released the program brochure of the conference and you can view it at this link: http://www.cara.nic.in/International_Conference.doc

In the last page under plenary session # 4, there is my name doing a presentation (last item). I am excited about this opportunity to meet so many people in the field of adoption. If you have not subscribed to our free newsletter, I suggest that you subscribe to it as I am planning to report about the conference from New Delhi. You can do here at this link: http://www.indiadoption.blogspot.com/

Attending CARA conference

I am excited that I have been invited by CARA to be their resource person for the upcoming CARA conference. I consider this as an honor and recognition of our efforts to promote the message of adoption in/ from India.

I will be reporting about the conference on this blog and interviewing eminent people in the field of adoption (when and where possible). General information about the conference will be open to everyone on this blog but our exclusive information (such as interviews) will be available to the subscribers of our newsletter - "COLORS". You can read more about subscribing to our free newsletter - "COLORS" on our blog at http://www.indiadoption.blogspot.com/

I am planning to spend a few days longer in New Delhi to make use of this opportunity to meet up policy makers to impress upon them about the issues that I am passionate about reforming. If you have a particular question or a conceren that you would like for me to bring up during this conference, please do write to me at indiahopehouse@gmail.com Ofcourse there are no guarantees that I will fulfill your request but I promise to give it a good try.

Please spread the word around.

Ruby