MP Climbs to 9th in Child Adoption Rankings, Girl Adoptions Outnumber Boys

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Madhya Pradesh ranked 9th in the country in adoption of children in 2025-26, up from the 13th rank in 2024-25. Among the adopted children, the number of girls was higher than the boys.

According to a report, released by the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) recently under the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development, the total number of child adoptions in MP increased to 221 in 2025–26, marking a substantial increase of over 66% from the 133 adoptions recorded in 2024–25.

In-country (domestic) adoptions rose from 121 to 207 and inter-country (international) adoptions jumped from 12 to 14.

Continuing a positive social trend, girl children accounted for the majority of adoptions in the state.

Out of the 221 children adopted in 2025–26, 125 were girls compared to 96 boys. This follows the pattern observed in 2024–25, when 76 girls were adopted against 57 boys.

The health-wise data for 2025–26 indicates that out of the total 221 adopted children in MP, 209 were categorised under normal health, while 12 children with special needs found families – 8 of whom were adopted through inter-country placements.

The overall national total also witnessed a jump from 4,515 adoptions in 2024–25 to 5,022 in 2025–26. In 2025-26, the highest number of children (730) were adopted from Maharashtra, followed by Gujarat (535), Tamil Nadu (446), Karnataka (348) and Telangana (280).

In 2024-25 also, Maharashtra accounted for the highest number (790) of adoptees followed by Tamil Nadu (438), Karnataka (293), West Bengal (297), Odisha (259) and Telangana (250).

Child adoptions in MP

Item 2024-25 2025-26

Total Adoptions 133 221

Adoption type

In - Country 121 207

Inter - Country 12 14

Gender Breakdown

Female 76 125

Male 57 96