I was 6 years old when I became an orphan. Since then, I have grown up in a care home, under the Child Welfare Committee. I somehow completed my education against all odds and today, I am standing on my own two feet.

When I got an opportunity to go abroad and get a job, I immediately applied for an Indian passport. But little did I know that for an orphan to get any government document made in this country is not an easy process. It took me 7 years and 5 attempts to get my passport made. Each time I ran from pillar to post for the right information, for the ‘right’ document. And each time I experienced bureaucratic apathy. When I began, I did not have a birth certificate because of which, my nationality was questioned at every step.

Today, I have my Indian passport with me. But I had to pay a heavy price for it. I lost many job opportunities that came my way in those 7 years, because I did not have this one document. If I had gotten my passport sooner, my career might have taken a very different path.

Should it be so difficult for an Indian citizen to get a government document made? This struggle is not only mine but that of thousands of others who grow up in child care homes. I don’t want them to go through what I did.

Sign-share my petition so that the government mandatorily registers each orphan’s birth and provides the child with a birth registration document. This will make it easier for orphans like me to become self-sufficient once we leave the care homes.

We are orphans with no bearings of our own. Due to lack of an official identity, we are often called ‘Bangladeshi’, ‘Pakistani’ or ‘Nepali’. More than 200 children reside in each Child Care home in Every States . You can imagine the total number of orphans in India are fighting for their future. The State government gives them food, shelter and formal education. But as soon as they step out of the child care home at the age of 18, their identity starts getting questioned. Many of my friends neither have their birth certificates nor any other identity card. Applying for a job or accessing a government scheme is nearly impossible without a government document that legitimizes our identity.

In these 7 years, I have learnt that a birth certificate is an important piece of document which I need to prove that I am an Indian. And it is this very document that many of us don’t have. Currently, the responsibility of procuring birth registration documents and orphan certificates rests with the children themselves. Many of these children pull back due to a lack of information and systemic indifference. Providing them the necessary documents should be the responsibility of the Government of India and State Government.

Therefore, it is my humble request to you, please sign and share this petition and urge the Ministry of Women and Child Development  and National Commission For Protection of Child Rights  direct all States Government to register the birth of orphans growing up in child care homes, and mandatorily give them a birth registration document.

Children are the future of our country, regardless of where they are from. Thank you for stepping up and ensuring that they have a shot at a brighter and better life.

Thank You!