Child marriages in Karnataka rose by 300% in 5 years, shows Govt data
Experts said this rise in child marriages has come amid the coronavirus pandemic as families, mostly in rural areas, faced uncertainty and loss of jobs.
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Out of the 2,819 complaints filed in 2021-22 alone, the Women and Child Development Department managed to prevent 2,401 child marriages while 419 marriages took place. (Representational image)The number of child marriages in Karnataka has reached alarming numbers with the state witnessing 418 such marriages in 2021-22, up from 102 or by 300 per cent compared to 2017-18, government data shows.
Experts said this rise in child marriages has come amid the coronavirus pandemic as families, mostly in rural areas, faced uncertainty and loss of jobs.
To a question raised by MLC Muniraju Gowda PM in the Legislative Council, the Women and Child Development Department said in its reply that 1,065 child marriages took place and 10,352 complaints of child marriage were registered in the last five years in the state.
According to the department, Mandya reported zero child marriage in 2017-18 and the number went up to 76 in 2021-22 in the district. Hassan, which had reported four child marriages in 2017-18, reported 39 marriages in the last academic year and Bengaluru Rural district saw 21 such marriages in 2017-18 and 39 in 2021-22. The Mysuru district saw a single case of child marriage in 2017-18, and in 2021-22, there were 33, it added.
Out of the 2,819 complaints filed in 2021-22 alone, the Women and Child Development Department managed to prevent 2,401 child marriages while 419 marriages took place. The police registered 389 FIRs in connection with the marriages. Compared to the previous years, though the complaints numbers have reduced, the number of child marriages has doubled, data showed.
Kripa Alva, the former chairperson of the Karnataka State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, said child marriages have increased exponentially because of unemployment and financial insecurity. “Post Covid19, if you see the school dropouts also increased and likewise the child marriages also. There is distress among parents in rural areas which pushed them to not to admit their children to schools as some faced problems of affording the education as well as to marry them off,” added Alva.
Niranjan Aradhya, Senior Fellow, Centre for Child and the Law at National Law School of India University (NLSIU), said the numbers are alarming. Earlier, child marriages were reported more in North Karnataka districts like Yadgir, Raichur, and Bagalkot but now they are being reported in districts like Mandya and Mysuru as well.
| Year | Total complaints filed: | Child marriage prevented: | Child marriages that took place: | No. of FIRs registered: |
|
2017-18 Story continues below this ad |
1,353 | 1,251 | 102 | 61 |
| 2018-19 | 1,394 | 1,275 | 119 | 48 |
| 2019-20 | 1,779 | 1,623 | 156 | 130 |
| 2020-21 | 3,007 | 2,711 | 296 | 239 |
| 2021-22 | 2,819 | 2,401 | 418 | 389 |
“In the social context, education keeps a girl away from early marriage. Once she is a dropout, the family considers her a liability, especially in rural areas, and they marry her off. The government needs to look into the issue seriously and address it. Post Covid-19, child marriages were reported more in the state because of various reasons including uncertainty and unemployment,” he adds.
On its part, the department said it has launched a campaign against child marriages under a programme ‘Video on Wheels’ which will travel to 788 hoblis or a group of villages across the state and telecast 3,000 shows. It will also telecast 350 shows in Bengaluru.
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