The PCMA and the POCSO Act

Earlier this month, Assam began a massive crackdown against child marriages in the State - so far, over 4,000 cases have been registered and over 3,000 people have been arrested. Protests have broken out in the State as young girls and children have been left with no wage earners in the family. Assam has high rates of child marriage -- while the all-India figure as per the latest National Family Health Survey was 23.3%, in Assam, the figure was 31.8 percent. The Assam Chief Minister in fact said the drive against child marriage was for public health as teenage pregnancy rates were high. Concerns around child marriage and the health of young girls are valid and should be dealt with, but does using the criminal justice system help? Why does India continue to have significant numbers of child marriages? How much is this to do with access to education? And what policies have worked in other States and other parts of the world to help bring child marriage rates down?

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