Despite blanket ban, child marriages take place in Madhya Pradesh

Mangalore Today News Network

Bhopal, May 2, 2015 : Despite a blanket ban on performing child marriages across the country, startling reports have revealed that over a dozen child marriages took place on the auspicious occasion of Akshaya Tritiya or Akha Teej and in the remaining six-days of April in Madhya Pradesh, despite the state government asking the collectors to make proper arrangements in their respective districts to ensure that no child marriages takes place.

 

Over a dozen such marriages took place on the auspicious occasion of Akshaya Tritiya in the state despite a blanket ban by the government.

Child marriages being performed across rural Madhya Pradesh.

Official figures reveal that the number of adolescent girls who have been saved from the curse of early marriage last week is abysmal. "One under-age marriage planned to take place in Bhopal was prevented," said a senior district official.

Ironically, the state’s Lado Abhiyan, was chosen for the Prime Minister’s Excellence Award 2013-14, this year, for preventing the malpractice of child marriage. The award was given by Narendra Modi to Commissioner Women’s Empowerment Kalpana Shrivastava in New Delhi on April 21.

Launched in the year 2013, the main objective of the campaign was to apprise people of provisions of Prevention of Child Marriage Act-2006 and making them aware about ill effects of a child marriage.

According to government official, under the campaign 52,000 child marriages were prevented through counseling before the event from April 2014 to February 2015. In all, 1,511 child marriages were prevented on the spot while 41 FIRs were registered with police.

 

Courtesy: Indiatoday