With a confirmed genetic defect in the family, should one go in for a biological baby? Is it fair to the unborn child that it should enter the world with every chance that it will be afflicted throughout its life? Or should one adopt a child, which would free the family from much anxiety and possibly feelings of guilt and, at the same time, provide a proper home for a child who may otherwise never know one. It is a hard decision. One woman who made such a decision and convinced her husband and extended family of the wisdom of adopting a child is Mrs. Subha Subramaniam, who works as a special educator in a school in Adyar.
Garimela Subramaniam, Assistant Editor in The Hindu, is blind, being afflicted with a rare eye disorder, which runs in his family. Several years back in England, doctors had told him the disorder might have been genetically transmitted. His elder brother also suffers from poor eyesight, as does a maternal uncle. The same handicap was traced in at least one other member of the previous generation. Subramaniam's retina was found deficit in light sensitive cells and the nerve endings connecting the retina to the brain were functioning poorly or not at all. Medical science offered no treatment and the chances were that his children would have the same disability.
The Subramaniams experience with advice and views in Chennai on the question of raising a biological family was surprising. Visiting a major eye hospital four years back to get clear guidance in the matter, the chief doctor, a world-renowned authority, casually told them, "Why do you wait? You should take a chance." But Subha thought that adopting a baby was a far better alternative. She sounded her husband, who really needed little convincing. Fortunately for them, the extended family also accepted the proposal wholeheartedly. They registered with Karna Prayag, a recognised adoption agency, giving their preference for a girl child of about a year and a half.
Why a girl child? Because girls are the most discriminated against, says Subha. And so Uma, who came into their lives barely four months later, is now a happy child in a happy family, which is free from the anxieties that would certainly have plagued them under other circumstances.
