Experts attending a consultation on non-institutional care system for children here on Saturday laid emphasis on strengthening kinship care, foster care and sponsorship which could protect the interests of orphans and ensure their upbringing in a family environment. They said the alternative care of children would be more effective than the institutional mechanism.
The State-level consultation, covering legal, ethical and social aspects of children’s care, was organised by the Rajasthan High Court’s Juvenile Justice Committee in collaboration with UNICEF. The committee chairperson Justice Sandeep Mehta said the State should invest more in keeping children at home rather than the child care institutions.
Last resort
Supreme Court Judge Justice Deepak Gupta said the families should be supported to provide care to children in need and lodging them in the institutions should be the last resort. “The juvenile justice system will be effective if it is sensitive towards children. All stakeholders should play their role in upbringing of children, as even the small interventions may lead to big changes,” he said.
UNICEF-Rajasthan chief Isabelle Bardem said the family-based care could be ensured in different forms of kinship if a robust child protection cadre was established to work in synergy with the stakeholder departments. She said an effective monitoring would also ensure children’s safety in the institutions as an interim arrangement.
