139 adoption cases pending with district magistrates: Officials

According to official data, 174 cases were pending in September last year in Maharashtra and now the number stands at 35.However, 329 adoption cases are pending at either specialised adoption agencies or district child protection unit level due to uncertainty created as a result of the interim order of the Bombay High Court.

Amid concerns that the amended adoption rules that make district magistrates instead of courts responsible for issuing adoption orders would lead to high pendency, a senior official said just 139 cases are pending with DMs and the number reduced from 997 in last September when the changes came into force.

The official also said that a total of 2,297 adoption orders have been issued since the amended rules came into force.

Out of 997 adoption cases pending as on September 2022, 858 adoption orders have been issued and, as on June 20, the pendency is 139, a senior official said Among states, Maharashtra has the highest number of adoption cases. According to official data, 174 cases were pending in September last year in Maharashtra and now the number stands at 35.

"However, 329 adoption cases are pending at either specialised adoption agencies or district child protection unit level due to uncertainty created as a result of the interim order of the Bombay High Court. There is no adoption order pending with the court," the official said.

There have been concerns that giving district magistrates the responsibility will lead to delays as they are already overburdened.

In January, the Bombay High Court granted an interim stay on the transfer of pending adoption matters from courts to district magistrates and directed courts to continue adjudicating such cases.

The Bombay HC has clarified that it hadn't stalled any adoptions and that all procedures should continue as they were before the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Amendment 2021.

After Maharashtra, the highest number of adoption cases pending with district magistrates was in UP at 21, Bihar at 20 and Odisha at 15, according to the data.

All over the country, there are 359 adoption cases pending with the child welfare committee and 332 at the specialised adoption agencies level.

According to official data, there are 2,191 children who are available for adoption while there are 30,217 in-country prospective adoptive parents (PAPs) registered and 984 inter-country PAPs.

The official said adoption counselling has been stipulated at pre-adoption, adoption and post-adoption levels, both for older children and the adoptive parents.

Counsellors are being trained with the help of the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS) under SAMVAD, the official said.

The official said 581 chief medical officers are on board the Child Adoption Resource Information & Guidance System (CARINGS) to ascertain and issue certificates for children with special needs.