The Government of India has submitted its third and fourth combined report on the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (dated 26 August 2011), which is due to be examined by the Committee on the Rights of the Child at its 66th Session, taking place in May-June 2014 in Geneva.
For the full report, please visit: http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/crc/crcs66.htm
Among information provided by the Government of India relating to children’s care, including sections addressing Family Environment and Alternative Care, the following is noteworthy:
- It is estimated that a large number children are destitute and orphans or without parental support in the country. Many of them have been placed in institutional care. These include children in conflict with law, children of prisoners, and children in need of care and protection. Information on the number of children, who are not orphaned but placed in institutional care, is not available.
- The Programme for Juvenile Justice provides for the establishment and maintenance of institutions for the rehabilitation of juveniles in conflict with law and children in need of care and protection. At present, there are 794 homes established under the JJ Act, 2000, catering to 46,957 children. This Programme has been merged with the recently-launched Integrated Child Protection Scheme (ICPS).
- There are an estimated 18.49 million People With Disability in the country (1.8% of the population). According to the Rehabilitation Council of India, these estimates are extremely conservative, and 10% is cited as more accurate. Based on the various estimates, there are between 6 and 30 million Children with Disabilities (CWDs) in India, who have special needs.
- The National Plan of Action for Children (NPAC), 2005, recognises the need for capacity building of both the parents in providing care and meeting psychosocial needs of the child through effective parenting programmes.
- The 11th Five Year Plan recognises that children are best cared for in their own families, hence, strengthening family capabilities is necessary to provide care and protection to children.
- The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Amendment Act, 2006 (JJ (Amendment) Act, 2006), provides for care and protection to children, who do not have adequate parental care for various reasons. It emphasises every child’s right to family by simplifying the adoption processes. It speaks of the State taking responsibility of the child if there is “no family or ostensible support or if the child is in continued need of care and protection”. The State has the obligation to provide shelter to the child till a suitable rehabilitation is found, or up to the age of 18 years, through institutional or non-institutional care such as sponsorship, adoption and foster care. The Act outlines provisions for non-institutional (adoption, foster placement and sponsorship), as well as institutional care.
- The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Rules, 2007, (JJ Rules, 2007), also emphasise the role of family for care and protection of a child. It lays down the principle of best interest to ensure physical, emotional, intellectual, social and moral development of juvenile or child. These recognise the primary responsibility of biological parents to bring up a child with care, support and protection. However, in the best interest of the child, this responsibility may be bestowed upon willing adoptive/foster parents. It further specifies that in every matter and decision concerning children, their views should be respected and their best interests should be given priority.
- The Integrated Child Protection Scheme (ICPS) (launched in 2009-2010) strengthens service delivery mechanisms and programmes, including rehabilitative services for children in need of care and protection, including child victims of torture and/or ill-treatment. The ICPS thrust is on strengthening the family’s capabilities to care for and protect the child through capacity building, family counselling and support services, and by linking these to community support services.
- The services financed under the ICPS for strengthening/introduction are emergency outreach services through Childline, transitional/open shelters for children in need in urban and semi-urban areas, cradle baby reception centres, family-based non-institutional care through sponsorship, foster care, adoption and after care. In addition, institutional services such as shelter homes, children’s homes, observation homes, special homes, and specialised services for children with special needs are also provided under the Scheme. Besides, general grants-in-aid for need-based/ innovative interventions are also being given; a child-tracking system, including a website for missing children, is being created; and interventions are being planned for advocacy, public education and communication and training of all child protection personnel.
- Several States have also taken initiatives for providing care and support to children without parental care:
- In Rajasthan, the Government has launched ‘Palanhar Yojana’, a unique Scheme to provide alternative care to children without parental care and support. Under this Scheme, a child, whose parents have both died due to accident or illness, or have been awarded life imprisonment/ death sentence, is placed in the care of a willing family, for which financial assistance is provided by the State Government.
- The Department of Social Justice and Empowerment, Rajasthan, is running Shishu Grehs for newborn children abandoned by their mothers/ families and Balika Grahas for destitute and neglected girls in 6-18 age group.
- The Maharashtra State Government is implementing a foster-care programme called ‘Bal Sangopan Yojana’, for children without family support.
- In Delhi, the State Government has framed Foster-Care Placement Services to regulate the placement of illegitimate and abandoned children in the 0-6 age group, including those from fondling homes, juvenile homes and children referred by hospitals, nursing homes, social workers and welfare institutions with foster parents.
- The Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) promotes domestic adoption for the rehabilitation of orphaned, abandoned and destitute children and regulates inter-country adoptions in India. CARA, through its agencies, gives approximately 3,000 children in adoption every year. In addition, a large number of adoptions take place between families and relatives, and through direct adoption. CARA is implementing the ‘Scheme of Assistance to Homes for Children (Shishu Grehs) to Promote in-country Adoption’. At present, 74 organisations are being provided Grant-in-Aid to promote domestic adoption.
In order to strengthen a supportive, enabling and protective environment for children, the Ministry of Women and Child Development has identified the following issues for priority attention in the coming years:
- Creation of support services to families at risk and strengthening of implementation of policies, legislation and programmes to protect children from vulnerable and exploitative situations.
- Adequate child-care services and institutions for children in need of care and protection, including child victims of abuse and exploitation, children of vulnerable groups, such as prisoners, and children of working parents.
- Strengthening lateral linkages with essential services for children, such as education, health, police, judiciary, services for the disabled, etc.
- Capacity-building of parents, caregivers and professionals engaged in child care at various levels.
- Training and sensitisation of judges, lawyers and counsellors for adopting a ‘child-centred approach’.
- Adequate trained manpower and infrastructure, such as CWCs and Shishu Grehs to deal with issues of abandonment, abuse and neglect of children.
- Comprehensive reporting of incidences of child sexual abuse and prosecution of perpetrators.
- Expanding family-based non-institutional care services such as sponsorship, kinship care, foster care and adoption for rehabilitation of children without family care and support and strengthening follow-up and monitoring of these.
- Simplification of adoption process, supported by provision of trained staff, and adequate counselling support to parents.
- Establishment of specialised adoption agencies in every District, supported by a centralised and comprehensive database to identify children for adoption.
- Strengthening State adoption programmes to rehabilitate large number of children in institutional care without homes/ family.
- Mapping of children in need of care and protection and the services available for them at the city/District/State levels.
- Enhancement in allocation of resources for strengthening protection of vulnerable children.
- Strengthening monitoring and systems for analysing implementation of these provisions and their outcomes for children.
