RAISING THE LEGAL MARRIAGE AGE FOR WOMEN
Off lately, the Union Cabinet cleared a proposal to bring uniformity in the marriageable age
of men and women.
By amending the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act (PCMA), 2006 and other personal law,
the legal age of marriage of women will be raised from 18 to 21 years.
In India, the minimum age of marriage was prescribed for the first time by the law known
as the Sarda Act, 1929. It was later renamed as the Child Marriage Restraint Act (CMRA),
1929.
In 1978, the law was amended to raise the minimum age of marriage to 18 years for girls
and 21 years for boys.
This position remains the same even in the new law called the Prohibition of Child
Marriages Act (PCMA), 2006, which replaced the CMRA ,1929.
MARRIAGE MINIMUM AGE FOR DIFFERENT RELIGIONS:
1. For Hindus, The Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 sets 18 years as the
minimum age for the bride and 21 years as the minimum age for
the groom.
2. In Islam, the marriage of a minor who has attained puberty is
considered valid.
3. The Special Marriage Act, 1954 and the Prohibition of Child
Marriage Act, 2006 also prescribe 18 and 21 years as the
minimum age of consent for marriage for women and men,
respectively.
.
PROS OF RAISING MINIMUM AGE FOR MARRIAGE FOR WOMEN:
1. Women's and Children's Welfare: In terms of both her own malnutrition and that of her
kid, the mother's poverty plays by far the most important role. Early marriage and, as a
result, early pregnancies have an impact on mothers' and children's nutritional levels, as
well as their overall health and mental well-being.
2. Women's Empowerment And Gender Parity: A woman's educational level, living
conditions, health conditions, and decision-making capacity are all affected by her age at
childbearing.
3. Addressing Child Marriage: India has the world's highest number of underage marriages.
The law will aid in the prevention of child marriage.
CONS OF RAISING MINIMUM AGE FOR MARRIAGE FOR WOMEN
1. Difficulty in Fighting Child Marriage: The implementation of the child marriage law is
difficult.
4. The evidence suggests that when the law is used, it is mostly to
penalise young adults for self-arranged marriages.
5. The law to prevent child marriage does not work very well.
6. While child marriage has declined, it has been marginal: from
27% in 2015-16 to 23% in 2019-20, according to National Family
Health Survey (NFHS) 5.
7. 70% of early marriages take place in deprived communities such
as Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, and the law will
simply push these marriages underground instead of preventing
them.
2. Criminalisation of a Large Number of Marriages: The change will leave the vast
majority of Indian women who marry before they are 21 without the legal
protections that the institution of marriage otherwise provides, and make their
families criminalize.
3. Lack of Education is a Bigger Problem: According to the State of the World
Report 2020 by UNFPA, in India, 51% of young women with no education and
47% of those with only primary education had married by age 18.
CONCLUSION
Measures to curb child marriage
1. Improving Education: Activists believe that improving access to education is the key to
delaying child marriages, as the practise is both a social and economic issue. Skills and
business training, as well as sex education in schools, will be beneficial.
2. Improving School Access: The government should look at improving females' access to
schools and universities, as well as their transportation to these institutions from remote
places.
3. Mass Awareness Program: To raise public awareness of the rising age of marriage and to
foster social acceptance of the new legislation, a huge public awareness campaign is needed,
which they claim will be far more effective than coercive tactics.
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