JOURNAL OF THE NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION, INDIA VOL. 21, 2022 up because in the absence of such follow up, it is not possible to ascertain the progress and well-being of the child in the adoptive family. It could result in vulnerabilities and distress being experienced by the child remaining unnoticed, which may not be in the best interest of the child.48 Age Criterion to Determine Adoption: The regulation determining eligibility of adoptive parents provides that in case of couples, their composite age shall be counted and, therefore, whose count is 85 years, they are eligible to adopt a child up to two years; for 90 years, it shall be a child of above two years and up to four years; for 100 years, it shall be above four and up to eight years; and for 110 years, a child of age above eight and up to 18 years shall remain accessible.49 This rule of composite age of PAPs to determine the age group of child has categorised unreasonably; for example, if a couple wanted a child in the age group of 0-2 years and their composite age is above 90, it is not possible for them to adopt a child below the age of two, therefore delimitating their preferences.50 Furthermore, “when potential parents look to adopt, they fill out a form describing the perfect-match for them and the Central Adoption Resource Authority of India doesn’t have a department to follow up with prospective parents on these matches. In absence of a separate division to follow up, it lacks the means to check if these parents would be interested in adopting a child, who does not ‘exactly’ meet the original specifications, leading to a sharp decline in domestic adoption.”51 The Delhi High Court has even given directions to CARA to ensure that the applications for approval/NOC are processed in a child-friendly manner and, that too, in a strict time frame to avoid harassment and delay. It also suggested that a panel of Psychologists, Lawyers as well as NGOs shall be appointed in all the States so that the Child Study Report and Home Study Reports in the case of domestic adoptions in India are prepared scientifically in a time-bound manner. The local police as well as Anti Trafficking Unit of the Ministry of Home Affairs should be asked to give their response to the Adoption application within a strict time frame and if response is not received from statutory/government authority within the time-frame prescribed, it should be presumed that the said authority has no objection to the adoption.52 48 49 50 51 52 86 One Hundred Eighteenth Report on Review of Guardianship and Adoption Laws available at: https://rajyasabha.nic.in/rsnew/Committee_ site/Committee_File/ReportFile/18/164/118_2022_8_16.pdf (Visited on October 17, 2022). Regulation 5(4) of Adoption Regulations, 2022 Deepika Kolluru, Our ‘Unwanted’ Children available at: https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/andhra-pradesh/2022/mar/18/ourunwanted-children-2431432.html (Visited on October 17, 2022) D. Halder and K. Jaishankar, Inter-country Adoption and Human Rights Violations in India available at: file:///C:/Users/hp/Downloads/ INTER_COUNTRY_ADOPTION_AND_HUMAN_RIGHTS.pdf (Visited on October 18, 2022) PKH v. Central Adoption Resource Authority: MANU/DE/1646/2016