Child Marriage in India

Child Marriage in India



1 Pages 1-10

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1.1 Page 1

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Lend Your Voice
to
End Child Marriage
in India
Bringing Together Champions to End Child Marriage: A Joint Effort
by The Elders and Population Foundation of India
www.TheElders.org
www.populationfoundation.in

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One-third of the World’s
Child Brides Live in India
Number of women 20-24 years
old who were married or in
union before age 18 (2007)
India 24.5 million
Other Countries in South Asia
8.1 million
Remaining Countries 31.9
million
Sources: MICS, DHS and other national surveys, 2000-2007
As published in India Child Rights Index, 2011

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Prevalence of Child Marriage Across
Indian States
Percentage of women married
before age 18
Himachal Pradesh 9
Punjab
15
Kerala
15
Tamil Nadu
24
Orissa
38
Karnataka
50
Andhra Pradesh
52
Madhya Pradesh
54
Uttar Pradesh
55
Jharkhand
56
Rajasthan
58
Bihar
68
Source: DLHS-3 (2007-08), IIPS Mumbai

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Slow Progress
Mean age at
Marriage
18.5
18.3
18
17.7
17.5
17
16.7
16.5
16 15.7
15.5
15
14.5
14
1971 1981 1991 2001
Source: Census of India
Youth Survey: 2006-07
Mean age at marriage
among female youth
(15-24 years) in India is
16.2 years
49% of female youth
15-24 years are married
before the age of 18
Youth Survey: Findings from the first sub-nationally representative youth Study
conducted in 6 states by the International Institute for Population Sciences, Mumbai
and the Population Council, New Delhi, 2006-07

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Findings from a Youth Survey
• Three of ten young men and four of ten young
women do not know that 18 years is the legal
minimum age at marriage for females
• 91% of young women,
regardless of marital
status or rural-urban
residence, said they
would prefer to marry
after the age of 18
• As many as one in ten
young men and one in
four young women reported that their parents
did not seek their approval while determining
their marriage partner
• One-quarter of young women reported that
their first sexual experience within marriage
had been forced, and one in three young
women reported ever being forced to engage
in sex by their husband
Source: Youth in India: Situation and Trends 2006-07

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Child Marriage: What is the Law?
• Child marriage (below 15 years for girls and
18 for boys) was made illegal in 1929.
• In 1978, the age was increased to 18 for girls
and 21 for boys.
• The Child Marriage Prohibition Act 2006
made the solemnization of child marriage a
cognizable and a non-bailable offence.
The Act talks about complete prohibition of
child marriages, but fails to declare all child
marriages illegal

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Married While Still a Child Denies a Girl
Her Basic Human Rights
• Article 16 of The Universal Declaration of
Human Rights stipulates that marriage should
occur only “with the free and full consent of
the intending spouses.”
• India is a signatory to international
conventions that ban child marriage
• Child marriage is also a blatant violation of the
rights of children as enunciated in the
Constitution of India.
These are the right to:
- A free and joyful
childhood,
- Education,
- Development,
- Participation ,
- Health,
- Equality,
- Employment and a
- Dignified Life

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Child Marriage Endangers Girls’ Health
• Girls under age 15 are five times more likely to
die in childbirth than women in their 20s
• Girls aged 15-19 are twice as likely to die in
childbirth than women in their 20s
• Girls under 18 are
also at much higher
risk of pregnancy-
related morbidity
• Child brides are at
greater risk of
contracting HIV and
other sexually
transmitted diseases
• The children of child brides are 60% more
likely to die before their first birthday than the
children of mothers who are over 19.

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Child Marriage Keeps Girls out of School
Child brides are often forced to leave school as soon
as they are married
Age at marriage and marital status of young
women 20-24 by education in India/2005-06
90
80
77
70
62
60
50
40
30
20
18
25
13
35 38
27
47
29
24
10
5
0
No education
Primary
Secondary or
higher
Total
Married before age 18 Married at age 18 or later
Unmarried
Source: Knot Ready, ICRW 2008

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Child Marriage Threatens Development
It hinders the achievement of six of the eight
Millennium Development Goals

2 Pages 11-20

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Ending child marriage: Essential for
Sustainable Population Growth
• A matter of women’s
rights and health and
gender justice – of
treating women with
dignity and equality
• Appropriate age at
marriage and childbearing
in women is critical to
ensure good health for
women and children
• It also contributes significantly to sustainable
population growth by slowing down
population momentum - the tendency for
population growth to continue, even when
couples have fewer children, because of the
relatively high concentration of young
people

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As Champions, you can :
• Spread the word: Speak about the need to
focus on ending child marriage – especially to
the media, community leaders and policy
makers
• Promote girl child education: Showcase the
benefits of educating girls. Emphasize the
right to education and the need to keep girls
in school.
• Strengthen legal action: Support efforts to
advocate for stringent action against child
marriage – including appointment of Child
Marriage Prohibition Officers in districts.