Figure 4: No Copyright Infringement Intended

Context:

• Rajasthan's new marriage bill says that the bride and groom can apply for registration of marriage to the marriage registration officer of the place where they have been residing for more than 30 days.

About the Amendment:

• The marriage between the bridegroom who has not completed 21 years and the bride who has not completed 18 years of age could be registered by the parents or guardians within the 30 days of the marriage

Challenges to the amendment:

• It violates the present law in force against the child marriages.

Government Argument:

• The bill does not say that child marriage is valid. The bill says that after marriage, only registration is necessary. 
• It does not imply that child marriage is valid. If the District Collector wants, he or she can still take action against the child marriages.
• This will make it easier for the general public to register. This will bring simplicity and transparency to the work.

Meaning of Child Marriage:

• Child marriage can be described as a formal marriage or an informal union entered into by an individual before attaining the prescribed eligible age.

Data of Child Marriage:

• India is estimated to have over 24 million child brides.
• 40% of the world’s 60 million child marriages take place in India according to the National Family Health Survey.
• India has the 14th highest rate of child marriage in the world, according to the International Center for Research on Women.
• Marriage systems and practices vary by region, caste and tribe.
• Rates of child marriage are higher in the North-West and lower in the South-East of the country.
• The states with the highest rates of child marriage (50% and above) are Bihar, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. 

Effects of child marriage

• Girls who get married at an early age are often more susceptible to the health risks associated with early sexual initiation and childbearing, including HIV and obstetric fistula
• Young girls who lack status, power and maturity are often subjected to domestic violence, sexual abuse and social isolation.
• Early marriage almost always deprives girls of their education or meaningful work, which contributes to persistent poverty.
• Child Marriage perpetuates an unrelenting cycle of gender inequality, sickness and poverty.
• Getting the girls married at an early age when they are not physically mature, leads to highest rates of maternal and child mortality.

Reasons for early / child marriages

• Poverty: Most marriages happen as parents find their children burden specially the girls. Poor people marriage off their daughter to improve their conditions.
• Low level of education of girls: Low level of education ensures that girls are often not able to resist the pressure of child marriage. They consider themselves as burden on the family and do not understand the whole challenges associated with the child marriage.
• Social customs and traditions: Child marriages are an accepted norm by the culture. Most families consider it morally right to marry off their children.
• Inadequate Implementation of the Law: Child marriage restraint act, enacted to prevent child marriage has not been implemented with letter and spirit. Generally the local police and administration remains in hand in hand with the local society which negates the impact of law.

Law on Child Marriage in India

• Child marriage is prohibited in India as per the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006.

Objective of law

• allows anyone who was a child at the time of getting married to legally undo it;
• provides for maintenance for the girl in a child marriage;
• treats children born out of child marriages to be legitimate, and makes provisions for their custody and maintenance; and
• considers certain kinds of child marriages where there was force or trafficking as marriages which never happened legally.

Crimes under the law:

• for an adult male to marry a child wife;
• to perform or help with a child marriage in any way;
• to allow, encourage or fail to stop a child marriage (as a parent or guardian); and
• to attend or take part in a child marriage (as a parent or guardian).

Means of Implementation

• One can directly go to a District Courtand make an application – the judge can pass an order directing the people involved to not take part in the child marriage.
• One can go to a Child Marriage Prohibition Officerfor help with annulling a child marriage.

Way Forward:

• Government needs to work alongside civil society and local government to alter the existing social customs and ethos.
• Female literacy needs to be enhanced. Construction of girls toilets through Swachh bharat abhiyan, conditional cash transfers by many state government can help in mitigating it.
• The basic root of child marriage is poverty. Enhancing per capita income through decentralised development and rapid industrialisation of the economy can make significiant dent in the child marriage.