Uttar Pradesh chalks out plan to be free from child marriage by 2030
Uttar Pradesh is gearing up to intensify its fight against child marriage and plans to converge all the stakeholders at the grassroots level to end this social crime in the state by 2030. The same was discussed at a state consultation organised by the Uttar Pradesh State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (UPSCPCR) in coordination with Child Marriage Free India and supported by its coalition partner Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA) in Lucknow. Dr. Devendra Sharma, Chairman, UPSCPCR; Anita Agarwal, Member, UPSCPCR; Shyam Tripathi, Member UPSCPCR; Sandeep Kaur, IAS, Director, Women Welfare Department, UP; Omkar Yadav, Deputy Director, Women and Child Development; Ruchita Choudhary, IPS, SSP, Women and Child Security Organization, Police department; B P Kalyani, Director, Health and Family Welfare department; along with all the child protection officers, representatives of Anti Human Trafficking Units, One Stop Centre, NGOs and Childline (DCPU) participated in the day-long consultation.
Taking stock of how the fight against child marriage has taken shape at the grassroots in the state, UPSCPCR Director, Devendra Sharma said, “All the districts and blocks in the state have to deliver. Child marriage, child sexual abuse, child labour, child beggar and drug addiction are the five most important challenges ahead of us and we have to collectively work to combat these challenges. I consider ourselves fortunate that we have been given the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of those children who are vulnerable and have no one to take care of them. The onus is on us to ensure that the strategies see the light of the day. Those in the field have a huge role to play in saving the children of Uttar Pradesh from these evils.”
The speakers at the consultation unanimously agreed that while the laws and legislation have been in place, the implementation and awareness at the ground level are the keys to completely eliminating child marriage in the state. Notably, Uttar Pradesh ranks much lower in the prevalence of child marriage in the country. As per the National Family Health Survey 5 (NHFS 2019-21), 23.3 per cent of girls in the age group of 20-24 were married off before attaining the age of 18, while Uttar Pradesh stands much lower at 15.8 percent.
Lauding the state government’s resolve to eliminate child marriage, Dhananjay Tingal, Executive Director, Bachpan Bachao Andolan, said, “Uttar Pradesh has been extremely proactive in this fight against child marriage. On October 16, many government departments in Uttar Pradesh led a statewide drive and officials along with the masses had taken pledges against child marriage. This consultation is the next big step to intensify the fight and bring together the various stakeholders to work in tandem to end child marriage by 2030.” Bachpan Bachao Andolan, also known as the Association for Voluntary Action (AVA), is a coalition partner of Child Marriage Free India.
Chalking out a clear roadmap on how to combat child marriage, Sandeep Kaur, IAS, Director, Women Welfare Department, UP, “The sad fact that is that child marriage still prevails in the remotest areas of the state. We neither lack in funds and resources, nor in our powers to fight this menace. What we need to do is amplify \\our work in such areas which record high prevalence of child marriage, and spread awareness about the law as well as the consequences of this crime. We are also following the Supreme Court guidelines on support persons and are ensuring that they are followed at all levels.”
On October 16 last year, various state government departments including Women Welfare department and Education department had issued circulars directing their respective departments and officials to take part in Child Marriage Free Uttar Pradesh.