SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, Oct 19: A couple from Arizona State, USA, has adopted a 15-month-old orphaned girl from Dhanbad. Todd Blank, along with his sister and officials from the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA), arrived in Dhanbad on Friday to finalise the adoption formalities and take custody of the child.
Todd Blank is a trader by profession, while his wife is a professor at Arizona University. As his wife is currently pregnant, he brought his sister along to assist with the adoption process. According to Uttam Mukherjee, chairman of the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) in Dhanbad, the couple adopted the baby through CARA.
Background of the child
The infant was discovered abandoned in a bush along the Govindpur-Dhanbad road in 2023. A passerby admitted her to Asarfi Hospital in critical condition. Upon learning about her situation, CWC chairman Uttam Mukherjee arranged for her treatment, and after her recovery, she was placed in the Special Adoption Home, Kolakushma.
“When no one came to claim the girl, the CWC uploaded it in the Legal Free for Adoption portal,” Mukherjee explained.
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Successful match
Coincidentally, the couple from the USA had also applied to CARA for an infant. The central agency matched Todd Blank’s application with the Legal Free for Adoption portal, selecting the Dhanbad baby for him.
The child was handed over to the American couple in the presence of CARA officials, CWC chairman Uttam Mukherjee, District Child Protection Officer Sadhan Kumari, CARA Project Officer Neeraj Dey, Anand Kumar, and Dr. Ashok Talpatra.
This is the second time an orphaned child from Dhanbad has been adopted by a foreign couple. In 2022, a Canadian couple adopted a male baby.
In the recent past, the CWC, along with other authorized agencies, has rescued and rehabilitated many children from railway stations and other areas within the district.
