By: Ann Sarasa K R
India’s devastating second wave has wreaked havoc on lakhs of people across the country, and the statistics are disheartening. In an affidavit submitted to the Supreme Court, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) showed that over 30,000 children lost either one or both parents or were abandoned between April and May 2021. These staggering numbers gave rise to the term ‘covid orphans’, and the internet was briefly filled with pleas to adopt these helpless children.
The Government and Supreme Court stepped in to prevent people from resharing these pleas, fearing them to be a farce for trafficking and illegal adoption. Instead, they encouraged the public to refer these children to the Child Helpline number (1098), which would in turn bring these children before a Child Welfare Committee (CWC). CWCs are agencies set up as per Chapter V of the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 (JJ Act), and their role is to oversee adoptions and support children in conflict with the law as well as children in need of care and protection.
This gives rise to an important question: Are CWCs equipped to handle all that is expected of them as per the JJ Act? CWCs have full authority to dispose of cases that assist in the development and rehabilitation of children brought before it, but most CWCs don’t function as mandated. Considering the looming threat of a brutal third wave, it is crucial that we examine the issues plaguing CWCs and some of the steps that have been taken so far to mitigate it.
Challenges faced by Child Welfare Committees
A 2013 report had cited poor infrastructure, irregularities in member selection, and absence of monitoring as some of the biggest challenges faced by CWCs. It is disappointing to know that these same issues are still being faced. Section 27 (1) of the JJ Act envisages one or more CWCs in every district, however, earlier this year the Telangana High Court expressed concern over CWCs not being set up in 23 out of the then 33 districts. Even in places where they have been constituted, most committees are understaffed and are largely defunct.
In 2017, an alleged large-scale child trafficking ring in West Bengal used adoption agencies to traffic young children. During the investigation, it was noted that the district did not have a functioning CWC between 2013-2015, and later had an ad-hoc committee, which is not a provision under the JJ Act. The members of the illegal ad-hoc CWC stated that they were ‘pressured’ into giving certificates that are mandatory for adoptions. Unless we can ensure reforms are made to prevent such instances from happening again, a robust welfare system will continue to be out of reach.
Evaluating the Amendments to the JJ Act
The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Amendment Act, 2021, was passed in August and sought to ensure that the existing framework on child welfare is strengthened. Prior to the Amendment Act being introduced, one of the biggest challenges faced by CWCs was the lack of monitoring. This led to several Committees either being defunct or mismanaged, and regrettably it was the vulnerable children who bore the brunt of this. The absence of a transparent member selection process, appeals mechanism and regular review system only exacerbated these problems.
These were the three primary issues that needed to be addressed, and fortunately, the Amendment Act has touched upon these with greater clarity. With respect to CWCs, the Act specified additional eligibility criteria for committee members (Section 27 (4A)), allowed for appeals on decisions rendered by the committee (Section 101), and introduced quarterly reviews of CWCs (Section 27 (8)). The provisions of the Amendment Act are a step in the right direction since it holds CWCs to a higher degree of accountability.
The Amendment Act filters the member selection criteria by preventing those with dubious track records from being a member. The Act also allows decisions of the CWC to be appealed, which might prevent erroneous decisions of the CWC from being followed. Most importantly, District Magistrates are directed to conduct a quarterly review of CWCs. This would hopefully ensure that the committees are lawfully constituted and fully functional across districts. It remains to be seen whether these amendments will ensure that the hundreds of children in dire need of assistance will receive the prompt support they need.
The Way Forward
Acknowledging that our child welfare system is far from perfect is required in order to more effectively reform it. The JJ Amendment Act addresses some of the key concerns with CWCs, and we should continue making the right decisions. One way of improving the existing structure is to conduct the District Magistrate’s quarterly reviews as per schedule. This will also allow CWCs to help a larger number of children, since their sittings would become more regular. Having more accountability will ensure most of the problems faced by CWCs, such as sparse establishment and irregular member selection, are resolved quicker.
The threat of a harsh third wave is imminent, and we need to make sure our child welfare system can support children who are severely affected by it. This will be possible only if we have functioning CWCs that are equipped with the tools to handle the situation. Hopefully with more effort towards reforming CWCs, we can work towards a well-coordinated welfare system.
[Ann Sarasa K R is a second-year law student at Gujarat National Law University]
