Tinsukia (Agency): Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced on Sunday that a crackdown against child marriage will occur every six months, with the next drive set to take place later this month. He indicated that significant arrests were likely during the upcoming drive.
Speaking to the media, Chief Minister Sarma expressed his optimism that the issue of child marriage would be eradicated from Assam by the year 2026.
“Our campaign against child marriage will take place every six months. The next drive will be launched this month. The police are doing their job and you will hear about some big arrests once the drive is launched,” Chief Minister Sarma stated.
Earlier in March, responding to a question from Congress MLA Kamalakhya Dey Purkayastha in the state Assembly, Chief Minister Sarma had mentioned, “Our government has taken a series of steps to put an end to the menace.” He emphasized the government’s determination to eliminate child marriage in Assam by 2026.
Chief Minister Sarma outlined that the government had allocated Rs 200 crores for the campaign, which would facilitate the appointment of a special advocate for each child marriage case. The objective is to ensure that all accused individuals are convicted.
“We will keep launching crackdowns against child marriage and apprehend accused persons every 2-3 months. We will open a helpline number as well, as part of our sustained drive against this practice. We have so far charge-sheeted 900 persons. We have acted as per law,” the Chief Minister explained.
He further highlighted the government’s efforts to raise public awareness about child marriage and its consequences. The government aims to provide proper rehabilitation to victims through scholarships, education, and the provision of rice and food grains free of cost.
According to state government records, a significant number of arrests have been made in recent years under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006. The number of arrests has been on the rise, with 50 persons arrested in 2017, 106 in 2018, 156 in 2019, 216 in 2020, 166 in 2021, 257 in 2022, and 3,098 in the first two months of this year.