Two Years Of Collective Action Towards A Child-Marriage-Free India
Child marriage remains a persistent social challenge in India. Its prevalence among women aged 20-24 who married before 18 has declined from 23.3 per cent in NFHS-5 (2019-21) to 20.1 per cent in NFHS-6 (2023-24) — a fall of 3.2 percentage points. Launched on 27 November 2024, the Bal Vivah Mukt Bharat (BVMB) campaign works to prevent child marriage through legal safeguards, public awareness and community participation. In two years, it has conducted 6.85 lakh awareness programmes, reached 12.47 crore participants and registered 42.01 lakh pledges.
The legal foundation: PCMA, 2006
The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 replaced the 1929 Sarda Act, shifting the law from merely restraining child marriage to prohibiting it. A child is a male below 21 and a female below 18. A child marriage is voidable at the option of the party who was a child, and void in cases involving trafficking, force, deceit or immoral purposes.
Offences are cognizable and non-bailable. An adult male marrying a child, and anyone who solemnises, abets, promotes or attends such a marriage — including parents — faces rigorous imprisonment up to two years and/or a fine up to Rs 1 lakh. Women offenders are not liable to imprisonment. The Act provides for maintenance, residence and custody, and children of such marriages remain legitimate. Magistrates can issue injunctions to stop an impending marriage.
Child Marriage Prohibition Officers (CMPOs), appointed under Section 16, must prevent solemnisation, collect evidence, counsel families, create awareness and furnish returns. Effective implementation demands preventive outreach, not just enforcement after violation.
Supreme Court framework
In its judgment of 18 October 2024 in Society for Enlightenment and Voluntary Action v. Union of India, the Supreme Court directed States and UTs to appoint dedicated, full-time CMPOs at district and sub-district levels; create special units for coordination, monitoring and grievance redressal; run multi-sectoral awareness campaigns; train key functionaries; and use technology-enabled reporting and risk databases. The judgment shifts the focus from punishment towards prevention, protection and empowerment.
Beti Bachao Beti Padhao
While the law prohibits, BBBP — launched in January 2015 and implemented under Mission Shakti — works to change the social attitudes that sustain the practice. Led by the Ministry of Women and Child Development with four partner ministries, it promotes girls’ survival, protection and education through awareness, advocacy and community mobilisation. Promoting girls’ education and challenging discriminatory norms helps delay marriage and widen opportunities. BVMB builds on this foundation with a sharper operational focus on child marriage.
The campaign
Launched by MWCD on 27 November 2024, BVMB brings together government institutions, States and UTs, local bodies, educational institutions, frontline workers, civil society, faith leaders, youth and citizens around one national commitment. It aims to reduce prevalence and make India child-marriage-free by 2030, in line with SDG Target 5.3. MWCD fully funds the campaign, prioritising 257 high-burden districts identified through NFHS-5 data.
The portal
The BVMB Portal provides the digital backbone — public access to CMPO details, reporting of incidents, recording of awareness activities and pledge-taking, also facilitated through MyGov. It serves both as a citizen-facing platform and a monitoring mechanism.
100-Day Intensive Awareness Campaign
Launched on 4 December 2025 and implemented from 27 November 2025 to 8 March 2026, the campaign ran in three spells: schools, colleges and universities; religious institutions, faith leaders and marriage-related service providers such as caterers and tent houses; and Gram Panchayats and Municipal Wards, where resolutions declaring jurisdictions child-marriage-free were facilitated.
Key achievements
– Awareness: 6.85 lakh programmes conducted; 12.47 crore participants reached.
– Institutional strengthening: 71,882 CMPOs reflected on the portal, including 59,686 designated at Gram Panchayat level.
– Citizen participation: 42.01 lakh pledges — 40.96 lakh through the portal and 1.05 lakh through MyGov.
– Reporting and prevention: 4,536 incidents recorded on the portal, with focused interventions during high-risk periods such as Akshaya Tritiya involving district administrations, CMPOs and law enforcement.
Progress across States and UTs
Most States and UTs show a decline since NFHS-5. Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu recorded the largest reduction of 10.1 percentage points, followed by Andaman and Nicobar Islands (7.4), Assam (6.5), Bihar (6.2) and Tripura (6.1). Twenty-eight States and UTs are performing better than the national average, including Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Mizoram and Keralam.
The road ahead
The National Observance on 27 November 2026 marks two years of the campaign, providing an occasion to take stock, recognise the contribution of CMPOs and grassroots stakeholders, and renew the national commitment. The focus remains on strengthening CMPO arrangements, improving portal data, expanding awareness and pledges, and ensuring timely reporting and prevention. Prevalence is falling but unevenly, which is why the effort must be sustained until 2030.
