293 couples on waiting list for adopting children from Goa

Panaji: A couple from Goa who recently adopted a child told TOI that although the wait was three and a half years long, the patience was worth it.Five children in Goa are waiting to be adopted.As for the couple who waited for three-plus years, a child was made available to them for adoption after they registered online on the CARINGS portal of the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA). “We did a lot of research and spoke to friends who had adopted earlier, so we were aware of the long waiting period,” the couple said. “Although we were mentally prepared, we got impatient after three years. Every day was very trying.”The couple added that they had no issues as far as the process is concerned, as it’s a neat procedure. “The waiting period is the only concern, and we hope that it decreases in the future,” they said. However, the couple said they received a lot of negative reactions when they decided to adopt, spurred by the stigma that some attach to adoption.“Many couples choose to remain childless, fearing what society will say. They have reservations about the background of the child and the genes, which is very strange,” the couple said.Parents who register on the CARINGS portal can choose up to three states from which to adopt a child. It is a rarity for parents from Goa to get a child from the state — given its size, it has fewer children on the adoption list.Over the past three years, 45 children from the state were given in adoption to parents in Goa and outside Goa, the directorate of women and child development said.“Sometimes parents take time to decide on adoption, and by the time they register, their ages have already advanced, and then they are not eligible for younger children. This sometimes leads to adjustment issues,” an official involved in the adoption process said.TOI in the past reported that abandoned and orphaned children ranging from 2 months old to 15 years old were adopted from Goa by parents from within the state as well as other states and even other countries through inter-country adoption.Children from Goa were adopted by parents in the neighbouring states of Maharashtra and Karnataka, as well as Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Bengal, Telangana, Rajasthan, and New Delhi. Some children were adopted by US-based couples.According to CARA, the number of prospective adoptive parents is much more than the children legally available for adoption, resulting in parents having to wait.The seniority list is a dynamic one, and the waiting period depends on the availability of children legally free for adoption. Age, gender, health, and the state of the child are among the parameters considered by the prospective parents.