Child Adoption Resource Authority head moots tax sops

New Delhi: Reeling under a severe shortage of children in its pool, the national body on adoption has recommended a two-year tax break as an incentive for parents adopting through it so that traffickers selling children can be put out of business.

According to an estimate there are likely to be over 2 crore orphaned children in the country as on 2011. However, a mere 1,800 of them are available for adoption with Child Adoption Resource Authority (CARA).

"Our adoption figures are low because there are a lot of illegal adoptions taking place giving rise to trafficking. If we provide tax break for adoptions it will motivate parents to shun the illegal route," Lt Col Deepak Kumar, CEO, CARA, said.

As a result, he hoped, the middlemen indulging in child trafficking to make money through adoptions will go out of business.

"This will compel orphaned and abandoned children to come into our network," he said.

The proposal is among the suggestions being collected by the Women and Child Development Ministry for Finance Minister's budget speech.

Child trafficking is rampant in the country. According to CRY (Child Rights and You) around 180 children go missing on an average every day, 22 of them from the national capital.
Number of untraced children in 2015 was 62,988 as against 34,244 in the year 2013. USA too offers "tax credit" worth $13,460 or approximately Rs 9 lakh to encourage adoption and help parents offset strain on family finances.