GUWAHATI, July 20 � At a time when there is a general tendency among people to discriminate and avoid children with even curable deformities while opting for adoption, Assam stands as a beneficiary of overseas adoption of the children of a lesser God.
Parents from the United States, Denmark and even France are now vying for legal guardianship of children of a lesser God and the number of such overseas parents in the waiting list is fast increasing in Assam.
Unlike most Indian couples who appear reluctant in adopting children with certain degrees of deformity, these parents have no qualms about the same.
Born to a Below Poverty Line (BPL) family of Nalbari with a certain degree of deformity of her eyesight, four-year-old Jyoti (name changed) is the first of such inter-country adoption process from Assam.
While Jyoti�s guardianship was given to an NRI couple, Joy, another two-year-old baby boy was adopted by an American couple last month.
What is more encouraging is the fact that more such parents, including nationals from Denmark and France have applied for adoption for such children and the process to hand them guardianship after following all legal guidelines with both the source country as well as the receiving nation.
Anamika Das, co-coordinator, Sishu Greha ( Recognized Indian Placement Agency) told The Assam Tribune that the trend of inter-country adoption started from last year and it has been a boon for the children, especially those with certain levels of deformities.
�Such children (with deformities) are seldom adopted by Indian couples due to the stigma attached with it. However, with this new trend, things for these children who are either surrendered or abandoned by their biological parents, will change for good,� Das said.
Guwahti-based child rights activists told this reporter that such a trend would prove very fruitful for a region like the Northeast where there have been instances of parents committing suicide unable to bear the medical expenses of their children.
