The Supreme Court said that children living in child care institutions (CCI), whose parents have not visited them for over a year or have “unfit” parents or guardians, should be identified and brought into the adoption pool.
The court defined an “unfit guardian” as someone who is “unable or unwilling for parenting, indulging in substance (drug) abuse, abuse or alcohol, known to have abused or neglected the child, having a criminal record, in need of care themselves, mentally unsound, etc”.
A Bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud turned its focus on a finding by the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) that many children were living in CCIs for over a year with undetermined legal status.
