The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Amendment Act, 2021

The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Amendment Act amends the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015. It seeks to introduce measures for strengthening the child protection setup.

Key Changes made by the Act

• Serious Offences: It states that an offence which is punishable with imprisonment between three to seven years will be non-cognizable (arrest cannot be made without warrant). Earlier, it was a cognizable offence.
• Adoption: In case of adoption of a child by the prospective parents in India as well as abroad, the District Magistrate will issue an adoption order. Earlier it was done by a Civil Court.
• Appeals: The Act provides that any person aggrieved by an adoption order passed by the District Magistrate may file an appeal before the Divisional Commissioner, within 30 days from the date of passage of such order. Such appeals should be disposed within four weeks from the date of filing of the appeal.
• Additional Functions of the District Magistrate: These include: (i) supervising the District Child Protection Unit, and (ii) conducting a quarterly review of the functioning of the Child Welfare Committee.
• Designated Court: It proposes that all offences under the Act be tried in children’s court. Earlier, only offences punishable with imprisonment of a term more than seven years were tried in Children’s court.
• Child Welfare Committees (CWCs): It specifies certain additional criteria for the appointment of members in these committees.

Issues with the Act

• Empowering district magistrates to issue adoption orders may also lead to delays as they are already burdened with several responsibilities such as maintenance of law and order, land and revenue administration, disaster management, general administration, and implementing government schemes and programmes in their district.
• It doesnot provide for judicial oversight at the appeal stage because a person aggrieved by an adoption order, may file an appeal before the Divisional commissioner, an administrative body.
• The Committee on review exercise of Child Care institutions (2018) noted that many CCIs fail to provide even the basic services to the children including individual bedding, and proper nutrition and diet. Thus, there is a need to completely overhaul these committees instead of just administrative shuffling.
• Children declared legally free for adoption were not being given timely referrals by CARA, which leads to inordinate delays. Action must be taken against individuals responsible for the delays.