Safe sex translates into fewer kids for adoption

Adoption agencies in the city are noting a decline in number of babies coming in for adoption over the past two to three years.

Adoption agencies in the city are noting a decline in number of babies coming in for adoption over the past two to three years. Most of them attribute it to the HIV awareness campaigns advocating the use of condoms,besides availability of emergency contraceptive pills,preventing unwanted pregnancies and leading to fewer illegal births by unwed mothers.

Madhuri Abhyankar,director Society of Friends of Sassoon Hospital (SOFOSH),said that there has been a steady decrease in admissions of orphans at SOFOSH over the last few years. The advent of emergency contraceptive pills and extension of abortion facilities even to peripheral areas have led to a decrease in number of unwed mothers,who are the ones who usually abandon their children.

Alka Chandorkar,a social worker at St Crispins Home for Orphans also said that there was indeed a decrease in number of orphans coming to their institution. Maina Shetty of Bharatiya Samaj Seva Kendra (BSSK) said that with reduction in number of babies being brought into their adoption home,there is a commensurate increase in number of older children available for adoption. This is because of an initiative that began two years ago whereby children from Shishugruhas and other institutions were transferred to adoption centres with a view to their permanent rehabilitation.

Earlier,they would languish at the homes till they are 18. Now a whole lot of them between three and eight years of age are being transferred to adoption homes, said Shetty,crediting new drugs to prevent pregnancy and effective medical intervention.

Shubhda Hiwale,senior social worker with Adoption Co-ordination Agency,Pune,that oversees adoptions from nine institutions in Pune and Aurangabad said the number of children at adoption centres had decreased by about 40 per cent in the last two to three years.

Founder of Renuka Mahajan Trust,Col (Retd) NB Karaley also agrees that there has been a decrease in the number of children coming into adoption homes including his. He,however,differs on the reasons.

He feels it is mainly due to the Maharashtra government imposing restrictions on inter-district adoptions. The rule came into force two years ago. The new cumbersome admission procedure,whereby the mother relinquishing the child is made to wait at the adoption centre for 2-3 days for formalities,is another reason,according to him.

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pune
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