Adoption in India is known to be a rather long, tedious and painful process. Now, in an ostensible attempt to speed up the adoption process, the government has introduced some changes. It has notified the ‘Model Amendment Rules’ under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Amendment Act, 2021 and so, from September 1, instead of the courts, it is the District Magistrates who would have the power to issue adoption orders. But this change, instead of being welcomed, has parents and adoption agencies worried. What are they worried about? What ails the adoption process in India, and what is the way forward to make it a rewarding process for children and parents?