Editorial: When state takes on a parental role

The impact of the second wave of the pandemic has left India shell-shocked in more ways than one. Apart from exposing the lapses in critical healthcare delivery, the crisis has shown how the absence of a social security net and the prevalence of widespread unemployment can push crores of people into abject poverty in a matter of a few months. To add to this, thousands of children in India have lost one or both parents to COVID.

Last week, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights informed the Supreme Court that there are over 30,000 children who need protection in the aftermath of COVID. The Commission said 3,632 children had been orphaned, while 26,176 children had lost one parent between April 1, 2020, and June 5, 2021. The NCPCR has said that the numbers are likely to rise as many states have not yet collected all the data about children in rural areas, while some states are yet to commence the exercise.

In Tamil Nadu, at least 1,400 children have lost parents to COVID over the last year. Of the 1,400, 50 children have lost both parents. Last month, both the Centre and the State announced measures to offer some respite to these children. Chief Minister MK Stalin had declared that a Rs 5 lakh fixed deposit would be set aside for these children. The state government has also taken the responsibility of funding their education until graduation. The Prime Minister has assured that as part of the PM Cares for Children scheme, a corpus of Rs 10 lakh would be set aside for them to be redeemed when they turn 18. Their education is also being planned for in Kendriya Vidyalaya, Navodaya Vidyalaya and Sainik schools.

While these measures will help these children rebuild their lives, there are various aspects of childcare that both the state and central governments must start looking into. There is the question of the mental health of such children. Having undergone such trauma at a young age, children are often at a loss to process events such as the passing of parents. The role of efficient, empathetic counsellors must be underscored here, as these initial days of intervention might hold the key to the child recovering adequately from the loss and adapting to a new life.

There is also the concern of maintaining records about them, which will ensure the benefits assured to these individuals by the government reach them at the right intervals. Child protection officers will have a tall order ahead of them, as children by themselves will not be adept at presenting themselves at government offices and filling up lengthy application forms. A comprehensive plan needs to be set forth by the Tamil Nadu State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, which will ensure that welfare schemes reach the needy and are not siphoned off by opportunistic relatives or caretakers in institutions. As per the CM’s instructions, a special district-level task force has been set up, led by the respective district collectors, and this task force will identify children who lost their parents and offer necessary aid to them. Special committees are also set to be formed in Tamil Nadu to monitor the education and development of children receiving financial assistance.

One cannot ignore the question of freedom from exploitation and trafficking which looms large in the context of such children. In the thick of the second wave, several messages were floating with pictures of children, stating that they needed to be adopted, urging interested parents to contact the given numbers. The adoption of a child must only be routed through the Central Adoption Resource Authority. Experts recommend that as far as possible, children who have lost parents should be rehabilitated through members of their own families, as opposed to handing them over for institutionalised care, which should only be considered as a last resort.