Safe Childhood India

In a small town tucked between fields and a quiet river, children grew up knowing every face and every footpath. The morning began with bicycles creaking down narrow lanes, school bells echoing softly, and neighbours calling out reminders to eat breakfast. Becoming visible and feeling a part of the community…

Codependency is generally considered negative, though it often grows out of positive intentions like care, loyalty, and responsibility. Balancing between codependency and healthy development requires learning how to care for others without losing oneself. The key difference lies in boundaries. Healthy development allows a person to support, guide, and nurture…

A heritage tour for Indian children adopted abroad is important for helping them understand their roots and build a strong sense of identity. While adoption provides love, security, and family, it also involves separation from India’s culture, language, traditions, and early environment. As these children grow up in another country,…

Participating with older children living in child care institutions requires an approach rooted in understanding rather than judgement. Many of these children have spent years navigating loss, separation, neglect, or repeated rejection. Their behaviours—such as resistance, silence, or anger—are often survival responses shaped by experience, not signs of defiance or…

The lives of abused and neglected children can be transformed when care is guided by both head and heart. The head stands for informed judgment, professional knowledge, and a clear understanding of child protection laws and procedures. In the Indian context, this includes timely identification of abuse, proper reporting, legal…

When an adoptive mother says, “I am the second-best mother,” it usually comes from emotion, not from lack of love. Many adoptive mothers say this out of respect for the child’s birth mother, recognising that the child had a life and a story before adoption. It can also reflect the…

EVERY CHILD DESERVES A LOVING FAMILY (VOL-2) The book offers a comprehensive guide to the adoptionprocess, covering everything from the initial steps tofinalisation and beyond. Understanding the legal, emotional,and practical aspects of adoption is crucial for bothprospective and adoptive parents, and it’s great to see thatthe book addresses these topics…

Long periods of institutional care can seriously harm children and affect their overall development Institutions, even when well-managed, are unable to provide the consistent love, attention, and personal care that a family offers When children grow up in institutions for many years, they often miss these essential experiences. Extended institutionalization…

Online gaming has become an integral part of children’s digital lives in India, enabled by widespread smartphone access and affordable internet connectivity. Gaming platforms increasingly function as social spaces where children interact, collaborate, and form identities. While these environments offer developmental and social benefits, they are also being misused by…

Families who consider intercountry adoption from India often begin with similar motivations and assumptions. Prospective Adoptive Parents (PAPs) are generally driven by concern for the large number of children in institutional care who require permanent families. However, as PAPs engage with the Indian adoption system, initial expectations gradually give way…

From a trauma-informed perspective, naming is not a neutral administrative act but an early and meaningful intervention in identity repair following experiences of abandonment, separation, or loss. For children entering Child Care Institutions (CCIs), the loss of family, history, and familiar relationships often coincides with a profound disruption of self-identity.…