Safe care and adoption for Indian Babies

Walk up the iron stairs to our Snehankur adoption center and you'll hear the air filled with what you'd expect to hear from any maternity ward in the world. The reassuring sounds of babies crying. As you enter, there is a small room to your left with a neat row of incubators for the premature and new borns. To the right are the older infants.

At first glance there is nothing that separates them from any other baby you'd see in such a ward. Except for the fact these kids have all been abandoned. Some are the product of rape. Others have been left by unwed mothers. All too many have been discarded for no other reason than for being born a girl. In some cases a new born is deserted for having a deformity or disability of some kind.

The situation of millions of mothers from poor economic backgrounds in India are such that they all too often robbed of their choices, forcing them to make decisions to the outside world that might seem incomprehensible. This was certainly the case with baby Ajit...

He was born with a double cleft palate and left outside a temple. When found found by a local he had been infested by an army of red ants and needed immediate medical attention. He was taken to the nearest hospital where surgeons got to work administering the life-saving treatment that was urgently needed. Luckily the baby boy was made of tough stuff and pulled through and within a few weeks he was referred to our Snehankur hospital. There he received the care and love that had been missing in his young life by our dedicated team of caregivers.

In the weeks and months that followed, despite everything this little boy had been through his personality shone through and he was to prove a firm favourite with all that worked there. He was also about to begin have corrective surgery.

At the same time, a childless couple on the other side of the world in Switzerland were looking to adopt. (as previously reported, since the beginning of this year it has now been made possible for us to open our doors to international adoptive parents.) The couple had heard of Ajit's plight and began the lengthy process of adopting him with the reassurance that they would make sure he had the  best surgery that was needed. It took almost a year until they finally got the go ahead.

They arrived in India a little while ago, somewhat jet-lagged but energised by the excitement of finally seeing their little boy for the first time and being able to take him home. I'm really privileged to witness when they met for the first time and it was the most natural bonding you'd wish to see. Ajit was comfortable with them and it was clear to see that if was love at first sight. They were all made for each other.

Since we opened Snehankur's doors in 2014 we have rescued nearly 600 abandoned infants and placed them on our highly successful adoption program. We can also boast a 100% survival rate for all of the babies left with us, despite it being touch and go in many instances.

Such is the need for this vital initiative, the premises we are currently based in have become woefully inadequate.
In October our babies will move into a larger premises that will endeavour to meet the demands of many more of unfortunate infants with 50 beds. As well as the usual features we have been known for, it will also house a wing for babies with infectious diseases. With your support we will also be able to provided a ventilator (one of two in Ahmednagar) to our own beneficiaries and with other establishments in need. We can't wait to share the news and pictures of our opening in our next report.

The success of Snehankur is undoubtably teamwork. You are a part of that team that is changing lives and destinies of these rescued infants. You truly are part of something great. Thank you.