Over 59,000 child marriages prevented in 2022-23, Bihar tops the list: Study
The data also sheds light on the vulnerability of even younger girls with 26 percent of the prevented marriages involving girls aged 10 to 14. Bihar leads with 31 percent followed by West Bengal with 11 percent and Jharkhand with 10 percent.
FollowNew Delhi: A recent data analysis covering 265 districts across 17 states and union territories revealed significant insights into the prevalence of child marriages in India. The data stated that a total of 9,551 marriages were stopped or prevented through legal interventions by a coalition of civil society organisations. Almost 60 percent of these cases involved girls aged between 15 and 18 years old.
The data also sheds light on the vulnerability of even younger girls with 26 percent of the prevented marriages involving girls aged 10 to 14. Moreover, girls under the age of 9 accounted for 0.6 percent of the cases. Bihar leads with 31 percent followed by West Bengal with 11 percent and Jharkhand with 10 percent.
The findings are drawn from the research paper titled 'Educate to end child marriage' which advocates for amending the Right to Education Act 2009 to provide free and compulsory education from classes 9 to 12.
The paper emphasises the correlation between female literacy rates and the prevalence of child marriage from the National Family Health Survey - 5. The states with higher female literacy rates tend to have lower rates of child marriage. Kerala boasts a female literacy of 96 percent and a child marriage prevalence of 6 percent followed by Mizoram with 93 percent and low child marriage with 8 percent.
Similarly states with Bihar have lower female literacy rates at 61 percent with a high child marriage prevalence of 41 percent. Similarly, Rajasthan has a female literacy rate of 64 percent and a relatively high child marriage of 25 percent.
