Per Census 2011 India still has the custom of child marriage. 43% of girls and 11% of boys are subjected to it. A closer look at the data from Census 2011 website shows us this-

If we observe closely we will find that child marriage was a burning issue in the ’80s and ’90s. Surprisingly prior to ’70s we did not have this problem that prevalent. (see the duration of marriage for more than 30 years).

If we look at the age of marriage in all these cases we will see this pattern –

It can be observed that most of these marriages happen between the age of 14 to 17 years. Since WCD ministry is already discussing reducing the age of consent for sex to 16 years and if we reduce the marriage age to 16 years then a substantial number of marriages will be reduced from this list. Also now even 16-year-old boys are considered as adults for punishment, so if women mature faster then why should not we consider 14 years of their age of maturity instead of 18?

From the cumulative percentage of information, we find that approximately 25% of all child marriages happen before the boy or the girl reaches 14 years of age –

The UNICEF and UK govt. is trying to measure the economic impact of child marriage and coming up with a three-year research program to determine the impact.

Stop child marriage. Let these children study in the meantime and contribute in a better way towards the education and betterment of their families and society.

There is one unfortunately biased reporting in Indian media. Most of the media report the child marriage figures in numbers that include all child marriages counted in the census. However, the marriage might have taken place in the ’50s or ’60s. Media reports these marriages as it is happening every year and misleads people. That is how media crooks limit everyone else’s thinking ability as well.

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Also, Read – Why Did Vedic India Have Child Marriage?