Notwithstanding family pressure, Bhuvaneswari of Chompi village in Araku mandal and a few others turned into activists against child marriages after spurning their parents’ bid to get them married early. But the saga of child marriages still continues.
Illiteracy, fear of parental pressure to get married against their choice and the influence of modernisation are encouraging them to elope with partner of their choice leading to high incidence of teenage marriages in North Andhra mainly in areas bordering Odisha.
Kondangi Gopi, a labourer at the Visakhapatnam Port, says love marriages are on the rise. Hailing from Gatara Jilada in Korai panchayat of Dumbriguda, he thinks there is a need for a sustained campaign to create awareness to stop early marriages.
Poverty is the main reason for child marriages even as toll-free helpline Childline (1098) is restricted to the urban areas. By forming children clubs, the State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (SCPCR) stepped in and foiled child marriages to some extent during the past two years in North Andhra. Most of the marriages are being reported among the tribals, fisherfolk and the Yadavas. North Andhra has about 1,200 children clubs.
Visakhapatnam district has a tribal population of 6.5 lakh spread over 244 gram panchayats —the highest in Andhra Pradesh. It is the only district selected by UNICEF in Andhra Pradesh for implementation of the Adolescent Empowerment Project due to high incidence of underage marriages.
The project funded by the IKEA Foundation is under implementation in India, Pakistan and Afghanistan. Four districts in India are chosen for the project for three years in association with the partner-NGOs. Besides Visakhapatnam, Purulia of West Bengal, Sibsagar of Assam and Singhbhum of Jharkhand are the districts selected for preparing adolescents as change agents.
Former member of the State Commission for Protection of Child Rights S. Balaraju told The Hindu that in most cases, the incidents were not being reported due to the callous attitude of the official machinery and lack of awareness in the tribal and rural areas.
As per GO Ms. No. 13 and the Child Marriage Prohibition Act, 2006, Vigilance Committees comprising 12 members with an active role for Integrated Child Development Scheme officials should keep a tab on possible negotiations for wedlock during the marriage season.
Mr. Balaraju said there should be a child protection policy (CPP) with a child-friendly citizens’ charter. Despite several laws to protect the child rights, their implementation had been very poor. The poor implementation of the Prohibition of Child Marriages Act (PCMA), 2006 and subsequent GO Ms. No. 13 issued in August 2012 had also contributed to the problem. As per the GO, each village should have a vigilance committee comprising the sarpanch as chairman and anganwadi supervisor as convener. “It has remained only on paper,” he bemoaned.