What's the way ahead for India's Covid orphans?

In an affidavit filed before the Supreme Court on Tuesday, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has said that a 6-step scheme has been devised to monitor the wellbeing of children orphaned due to Covid-19 or those who have lost one parent.

According to the affidavit, data of 9,346 affected children have been uploaded on the newly created Bal Swaraj portal, which includes data on 1,742 children who lost both parents, 7,464 now in a single-parent household, 140 have been abandoned from March 2020 to May 29, 2021.

Out of all these children, 1,224 are now living with a guardian, 985 with a family member who is not designated as a legal guardian, while 6612 are living with a single parent. In addition, 31 children have been sent to the special adoption agency.