Safe care and adoption for Indian Babies

Thank you so much for your support. There are many reasons why babies end up in our care but as our founder Dr Girish Kulkarni says:

"Every child must have a family and an opportunity to find their potential,”

which is exactly what you are helping us to do.

In many cases we never find out the circumstances why a mother has abandoned a baby, in other cases it’s because she is unmarried or has been raped. Babies are often left on temple steps and public places such as bus and train stations where they will found quickly and brought to us. However often, they are sadly found too late which is why we appreciate and cherish every child who ends up in our care.

We’d like to share one of many similar stories we have to tell that will help you appreciate the real difference your donation makes to vulnerable babies:

Destiny’s Child

At about 4am on the morning of 17 April, as the night shift was ending and the childcare team were preparing for the next shift to arrive, a peculiar wailing could be heard from near our front gate. At first they couldn’t tell where the cry was coming from but upon closer inspection of the cradle, which sits outside the gate for mothers to safely leave their unwanted babies, they saw a tiny baby trembling and crying.

They scooped the baby girl up and carried her into the sanctuary of our adoption centre where our chief caretaker and duty nurse established she needed immediate medical attention. Meanwhile the abandoned child had been reported to the police who arrived shortly after and, sensing the critical nature of the infant’s condition, advised the team to take the baby straight to the hospital and complete the legal formalities later.

Three staff rushed to our nearest intensive care and neonatal unit where the baby was immediately ventilated and prescribed with such a long list of medication, her chance of survival seemed slim. The doctors explained that she was two months’ premature and having been exposed to the elements and pollution had developed pneumonia and was experiencing difficulty in breathing.

Following extreme precaution and with proper medical care and nursing our premature girl started responding to treatment and within 15 to 20 days her health had improved. Just as our Snehankur team was about to heave a sigh of relief, the infant started coughing severely while drinking her milk. Once again her condition became critical with further intensive medical attention needed.

We’re extremely relieved and pleased to say that following dedicated medical treatment and nursing the baby girl is in a stable condition once again. Her milk intake is now a healthy 30mls and we hope she will soon be completely out of danger. After all, she is destiny’s child and born to survive.

Petition update

Thank you if you signed the petition asking the President of India to reconsider proposed changes to the adoption process. We are concerned that by moving the process online and removing some of the current vetting processes it would be easier and quicker for anyone, including traffickers and non-Indians, to adopt a child. 

As part of the Federation of Adoptive Agencies we took our petition to the Mumbai High Court who ruled that the changes proposed were in conflict with the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 and should be revised. The Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) has instead decided that the Act itself should be changed.

We now anxiously await the court deadline of 21 July for the outcome and if it does not satisfy our concerns we will again be asking for your help to ensure vulnerable babies are not put at risk.

Help educate children

If you like this project you may also be interested to read how we support older children through their education.