Of the 19 children from Karnataka who were adopted by people from other countries in 2016–17, 11 had special needs. Officials of the Department of Women and Child Development have said this is a “heartening” trend, as differently-abled children are often not the first choice of those looking to adopt.
“There have been instances where families have chosen to adopt children with physical disabilities, vision defects or cleft palate. We have seen that families do extensive research on the treatments for any such disability even before the adoption formalities are completed,” an official said.
Of the 19 children who found a place they could call home, 12 were girls. The maximum number of adoptive parents were from the United States of America and the the remaining hailed from European countries. “We are glad that many people from outside the country are choosing to adopt children with special needs,” said Kripa Alva, chairperson, Karnataka State Commission For Protection of Child Rights.
In such cases, agencies registered with the government visit the parents once in six months for a period of two years.
While this trend is heartening, children with disabilities in need of a family do not find acceptance easily, especially among families residing in India. “We hope that it will catch up among prospective parents residing in the country as well. This is perhaps an indication that our society is not as progressive as that in other countries,” Ms. Alva said, and added that there was a need for a paradigm shift in the mindset of people. Only nine children with special needs were adopted by people living in India from among the Karnataka pool of children. This is out of the total 259 children from Karnataka who were adopted by people living in India in the 2016–17 year.
