Child Marriage Issue in Rajasthan :

Child marriage is defined by India’s Child Marriage Prohibition Act 2006 as the marriage of girls under 18 years of age, and marriage of boys below 21 years of age.  Although efforts to reduce child marriage in India have sharply accelerated over the past two decades, raising the median age of marriage of both girls and boys to over 18, the country still accounts for close to 40% of the world’s child marriages with one-in-five girls married before the age of 15. 

As per latest National Family Health Survey (NFHS-4 2015/16), while child marriage overall has declined substantially over the last ten years, an average of 26.8% of women between the ages of 20-24 were still married before age 18 (relative to 47.4% a decade earlier). In Rajasthan,  the numbers fell from 65.2% to 35.4% over this period, but it still remains in the bottom quartile of states across India. 

 Even though the Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929 came as early as it did, the practice continues well into the 21st century, and conflicting laws at the state and central level aren’t doing anything to make things better. Section 8(1) of the Rajasthan Compulsory Registration of Marriages Bill 2009, appears to recognize child marriage as legal by urging all persons below 21 years of age to register their marriage and is in contradiction of the Centre’s Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006.

The BIMARU states (Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh) in addition to being economically poor and backward, are also the states with the highest rates of child marriages. This suggests a correlation between this social ill and poverty – where brides aren’t allowed to prosper into healthy, economically productive, self-actualized beings.

Way Forward :

Child marriage is prohibited by law and the rate of child marriages has dropped down to a great extent. But, this practice is still not over and is prevailing in a lot of places even now.

The major point of concern is that as per records, Rajasthan tops the list in cases of child marriages. This information was provided by Women and Child Welfare Ministry. Minister for State for Women and Child development Dr. Virendra Kumar said that though there are strict laws against child marriages, yet Rajasthan, Bihar and West Bengal have too many child marriages going on even now. Rajasthan is on the top in this list as per data of 2011. In other parts of the country, there has been a decline in child marriages.

Directions have been issued to all zila parishads in Rajasthan to develop networks to prevent child marriages. Rajasthan state is notorious for child marriages. It reports the highest number of marriages where 35 percent of women are married before the age of 18.

Department of women and child development has made anganwadi workers aware of the negative effects of child marriage on females. Girls who get married much before they reach 18 years are very likely to give birth to under-nourished children. They themselves get anaemic in the process and most of them get closer to death.

Social workers and former child brides alike are now working towards discouraging the practice in their communities. They are advocating for complete education and work opportunities as necessities for women, as they are for men. It is hope to see a day where Rajasthan, which ranks second in the world for this social evil, will stop foisting the burdens of motherhood on its young women, and come around to the idea that marriage is not and should not be the sole purpose of a life that is born female.