Childline operates a toll free helpline 1098 for children in distress across the country. Make use of it.
Recently Hindu news paper reported this:
“For Adoption: If anyone wishes to adopt a girl, please feel free to contact Priyanka. One girl is three days old and another is six months old. They have lost their parents recently due to COVID-19. Please help these kids get a new life, spread the word.” Such messages on illegal adoption have been circulating on social media platforms as the second wave of COVID-19 rages on.
Child rights activists want the government to create awareness on adoption measures and monitor such illegal adoption networks to prevent the trafficking of children. They also want the government to involve civil society organisations to monitor and follow up with families affected by COVID-19
"All adoptions are regulated by the Central Adoption Research Agency (CARA). So, if anyone comes across a child orphaned due to COVID-19, they should inform the police, Childline 1098 or the District Child Welfare Committee (CWC),” said a source from the State Adoption Research Agency (SARA). “Civil society organisations should be roped in by the government to monitor families with children affected by COVID-19. This was supposed to be done in the first wave itself. The District Child Protection Units, along with Childline, should check if the children orphaned due to COVID-19 have any relatives to take care of them orthey should be taken to chil-drens' homes and given care," said M. Andrew Sesuraj, State convener, TamilbNadu Child Rights Watch. Smriti Gupta, CEO, Where Are India's Children, said in the past few days, they had been overwhelmed by the amount of messages on social media about adoption of children who had been orphaned by COVID-19.
“The entire adoption process is regulated pan-India by the CARA. People can find the nearest agency by contacting Childline or using http://cara.nic.in," she added..
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