Lok Sabha Question No. 976 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2016-04-29
Subject: Child Marriage
Ministry: WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: C. MAHENDRAN

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 976 TO BE ANSWERED ON 29.04.2016

## CHILD MARRIAGE

## 976. SHRI C. MAHENDRAN:

Will the Minister of WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT be pleased to state:

(a) whether the practice of child marriage is increasing in the country;

(b) if  so,  the  details  thereof  and  the  reasons  therefor  indicating  the  number  of  cases  registered  and offenders punished under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 during each of the last three years, State/UT-wise;

(c) whether  child  marriages  are  still  prevalent  in  the  country  particularly  in  the  rural  areas  due  to improper implementation of various laws, programmes and policies made by the Government in this regard and  if  so,  the  details  thereof  indicating  the  number  of  child  marriages  reported  recently  in  the  country including Rajasthan, State/ UT-wise;

(d) whether the Government proposes to review the Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929 associated Acts and the efficacy of the existing mechanisms put in place to prevent child marriages and punish the offenders and if so, the details thereof; and

(e) the other measures taken by the Government to prevent child marriages in the country?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT (SHRIMATI MANEKA SANJAY GANDHI)

(a)  to (c)    As per the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data which is available till the year 2014, a total number of  169, 222 and 280  cases have been registered under the  Prohibition of Child Marriage Act (PCMA)  2006  in  the  year  2012,  2013  and  2014  respectively  which  shows  an  increasing  trend.  The States/UTs  wise  details  of  number  of  cases  registered    and  persons  convicted  under  Prohibition  of  Child Marriage Act, 2006 during 2012 to 2014 are annexed. The reasons for child marriage are complex. Social customs, tradition, illiteracy, poverty, lack of awareness about consequences of child marriage are some of the reasons for the prevalence of child marriage.

(d) & (e)  The Government of India has enacted the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 repealing the Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929 in order to prohibit child marriages .  The States/UTs from time to time are being regularly pursued for effective implementation of the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006. Further, State Governments are requested to take special initiative to delay marriage by coordinated efforts on Akha  Teej -the traditional  day  for  such  marriages;  Advertisements  in  the  press  and  electronic  media educating  peoples  about  the  issue  of  Child  Marriage  etc  also  being  taken  up.  Platforms  such  as  the International Women's Day and the National Girl Child Day are used to create awareness on issues related to women and to bring to the centre stage issues such as child marriage. Through the Sabla programme of this Ministry, adolescent girls in the age group of 11 to 18 years are imparted training with regard to legal rights of women which also includes the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006. Under the Beti Bachao Beti  Padhao  Programme,  awareness  campaigns  have  been  taken  to  prevent  child  marriages  as  well  as emphasizing on girls education.

Annexure referred to in reply to Part (a) to (c) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question  No. 976 for 29.04.2016 regarding Child Marriage.

No. of Cases Registered (CR) and Person Convicted (PCVT)under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 during last three year.

| S. No.   | State/UT          | 2012   | 2012   | 2013   | 2013   | 2014   | 2014   |
|----------|-------------------|--------|--------|--------|--------|--------|--------|
|          |                   | CR     | PCVT   | CR     | PCVT   | CR     | PCVT   |
| 1        | Andhra Pradesh    | 29     | 4      | 16     | 0      | 16     | 0      |
| 2        | Arunachal Pradesh | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      |
| 3        | Assam             | 0      | 0      | 1      | 0      | 4      | 0      |
| 4        | Bihar             | 16     | 0      | 1      | 0      | 10     | 2      |
| 5        | Chhattisgarh      | 2      | 0      | 1      | 3      | 2      | 0      |
| 6        | Goa               | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 9      |
| 7        | Gujarat           | 14     | 9      | 12     | 6      | 16     | 6      |
| 8        | Haryana           | 11     | 1      | 17     | 0      | 15     | 0      |
| 9        | Himachal Pradesh  | 0      | 0      | 2      | 0      | 4      | 0      |
| 10       | Jammu &Kashmir    | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      |
| 11       | Jharkhand         | 0      | 0      | 1      | 0      | 1      | 3      |
| 12       | Karnataka         | 20     | 0      | 26     | 0      | 44     | 0      |
| 13       | Kerala            | 6      | 0      | 11     | 0      | 19     | 4      |
| 14       | Madhya Pradesh    | 3      | 0      | 6      | 0      | 15     | 0      |
| 15       | Maharashtra       | 6      | 0      | 16     | 0      | 14     | 0      |
| 16       | Manipur           | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      |
| 17       | Meghalaya         | 1      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      |
| 18       | Mizoram           | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      |
| 19       | Nagaland          | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      |
| 20       | Odisha            | 1      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      |
| 21       | Punjab            | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 2      | 12     |
| 22       | Rajasthan         | 10     | 23     | 5      | 8      | 5      | 5      |
| 23       | Sikkim            | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      |
| 24       | Tamil Nadu        | 0      | 0      | 56     | 0      | 47     | 0      |
| 25       | Telangana         | -      | -      | -      | -      | 13     | 7      |
| 26       | Tripura           | 0      | 0      | 1      | 0      | 1      | 0      |
| 27       | Uttar Pradesh     | 5      | 3      | 5      | 1      | 10     | 1      |
| 28       | Uttarakhand       | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      |
| 29       | West Bengal       | 43     | 0      | 43     | 0      | 37     | 0      |
| 30       | A &NIslands       | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      |
| 31       | Chandigarh        | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      |
| 32       | D &NHaveli        | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      |
| 33       | Daman &Diu        | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      |
| 34       | Delhi             | 1      | 0      | 1      | 0      | 2      | 0      |
| 35       | Lakshadweep       | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      | 0      |
| 36       | Puducherry        | 1      | 0      | 1      | 0      | 3      | 0      |
|          | Total             | 169    | 40     | 222    | 18     | 280    | 49     |

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