Why India’s adoption process is failing both children and parents

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Bansri Shah
TIMESOFINDIA.COM Aug 31, 2025, 20:36 IST IST

With over 36,000 registered parents and barely 2,700 children legally available for adoption, India’s adoption system remains stuck in red tape. The Supreme Court has called it too long and complex, warning delays drive families toward unsafe, informal alternatives

In early 2024, when Mumbai-based lawyer Isha Deshmukh (name changed) registered on the

Central Adoption Resource Authority

(CARA) portal, she knew she would have to wait. The mother of one adopted daughter wanted to expand her family. Nearly a year later, she was matched with a little girl. She was over the moon.
But hers is an unusual story in India. Most parents have to wait far longer — years in some cases — and many never reach the finish line. Recently, the

Supreme Court

called India’s

adoption

system “overly cumbersome and frustrating” for prospective parents, warning that the slow process pushes many into illegal or informal arrangements.

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