THANE: Nearly 60% of couples going for adoption in Thane district have shown a preference towards a girl child, reveals government data, throwing light on the shift in the rigid Indian mindset that preferred a male child to continue family legacy.
While international celebrities such as Anjelina Jolie and Meg Ryan, and closer home Sushmita Sen, Raveena Tandon and Sunny Leone, have adopted girls, parents from Thane district, too, are increasingly opting for adopting daughters. Five-year data compiled by the Thane district women and child welfare department and accessed by TOI shows that of the 213 child adoptions registered and executed since 2016, around 122, or roughly 60%, were for a girl child.
Social workers engaged in counselling prospective adoptive parents said a majority of couples, including those who are childless or already have boys in their families, preferred a daughter believing that girls are more likely to settle in easily with the family and look after them when they’re old. Officials also said there were almost negligible cases of adopted girls being returned over not being able to bond with their foster families.
“Not just childless couples, even those who already have sons in the family go for adopting a baby girl as they feel she will be more emotionally attached to parents. Surprising as it may seem, it’s a welcome change,” said Vandana Patildeputy director at Janani Ashish charitable trust in Dombivli, one of the registered agencies for adoption in Thane.
While citing case studies, experts said a few years back, an affluent family had insisted on a girl child despite having three baby boys, while another couple working in the IT industry adopted a baby girl even after they already had a boy. A childless couple from Thane also adopted two girls back-to-back recently. “The family told us they were keen on adopting a second daughter within a few years of bringing home their first,” said Patil.
Interestingly, records reveal that couples based abroad have also chosen to adopt girls. Around 32 girls were adopted from Thane district by couples based abroad in the last five years. Around 10 of these are girls with special needs, said Pallavi Jadhav, child protection officer, Thane district.
However, officials and experts also pointed out that while the volume of girls being adopted is encouragingly high, the count of daughters being abandoned or surrendered by their biological parents is also quite high. Though no official data was available, experts said approximately 65% of children at various child care institutes in the district were girls.
While international celebrities such as Anjelina Jolie and Meg Ryan, and closer home Sushmita Sen, Raveena Tandon and Sunny Leone, have adopted girls, parents from Thane district, too, are increasingly opting for adopting daughters. Five-year data compiled by the Thane district women and child welfare department and accessed by TOI shows that of the 213 child adoptions registered and executed since 2016, around 122, or roughly 60%, were for a girl child.
Social workers engaged in counselling prospective adoptive parents said a majority of couples, including those who are childless or already have boys in their families, preferred a daughter believing that girls are more likely to settle in easily with the family and look after them when they’re old. Officials also said there were almost negligible cases of adopted girls being returned over not being able to bond with their foster families.
“Not just childless couples, even those who already have sons in the family go for adopting a baby girl as they feel she will be more emotionally attached to parents. Surprising as it may seem, it’s a welcome change,” said Vandana Patildeputy director at Janani Ashish charitable trust in Dombivli, one of the registered agencies for adoption in Thane.
While citing case studies, experts said a few years back, an affluent family had insisted on a girl child despite having three baby boys, while another couple working in the IT industry adopted a baby girl even after they already had a boy. A childless couple from Thane also adopted two girls back-to-back recently. “The family told us they were keen on adopting a second daughter within a few years of bringing home their first,” said Patil.
Interestingly, records reveal that couples based abroad have also chosen to adopt girls. Around 32 girls were adopted from Thane district by couples based abroad in the last five years. Around 10 of these are girls with special needs, said Pallavi Jadhav, child protection officer, Thane district.
However, officials and experts also pointed out that while the volume of girls being adopted is encouragingly high, the count of daughters being abandoned or surrendered by their biological parents is also quite high. Though no official data was available, experts said approximately 65% of children at various child care institutes in the district were girls.