Digitalisation of Child Adoption in India: The CARINGS Experience

India’s adoption system has undergone a major administrative shift with the digitalisation and centralisation of procedures through the Child Adoption Resource Information and Guidance System (CARINGS) under the Central Adoption Resource Authority. While policy debates highlight both governance gains and concerns about mechanisation, limited empirical work documents how front-line institutions experience these reforms. This study examines how CARINGS has changed adoption practice, its perceived advantages and disadvantages, and the implications of its subsequent integration into the Mission Vatsalya digital platform. Using an empirical design, interviews were conducted with Adoption Coordinators from seven operational Specialised Adoption Agencies in Punjab between January and April 2026, following ethical approval and informed consent. Respondents reported near-universal benefits, including improved transparency, a uniform national process, stronger monitoring, and reduced scope for informal influence, alongside improved support for inter-country adoptions and clearer identification of procedural delay points. However, agencies also described challenges related to the digital divide, documentation burdens, reduced personalisation, and occasional language or coordination difficulties arising from all-India matching. Importantly, adoption workers continued to play a crucial facilitative role, helping prospective adoptive parents navigate the portal and safeguarding the best interests of the child.