The district social welfare office and the Childline ‘1098’ service has prevented 10 child marriages during the lockdown period. Most distress calls were made by the children themselves, officials here said.
Since March 24, 10 calls have been received, said A. Thameemunisa, District Social Welfare Officer, Tiruchi. The calls, received by Childline ‘1098’ is routed through the DSWO and both teams rush to the spot and take necessary action. Two calls came from Musiri, two from Vaiyampatti, Manachanallur, Marungapuri while one call was made from Thennur.
Of the 10 cases, nine were rescued before the marriage, and Community Service Register (CSR) were filed in a few cases and in one an FIR was filed, Murali Kumar, Project Coordinator, Childline ‘1098’ in Tiruchi said. “The families are sometimes shocked because they do not expect us to stop them during the lockdown,” he said.
Some families have taken advantage of the lockdown to conduct these child marriages. They will not have to print wedding invitations, invite a large group of people and spend on food and festivities.
These days, the calls they receive on a daily basis at the Childline are for physical abuse, child marriage while some children call seeking nutritional support, Mr. Kumar said. So far, families of nearly 70 children have been provided with groceries and counselling has been given to several families against physical abuse.
However, the number of calls received in comparison to last year is significantly low, he said. “Last April-May we prevented at least 20 to 25 child marriages. It is the season for such events as children complete Class 10 and 12 and are ready for marriage according to the parents.” This time around, either the children are not making the calls because they do not expect us to pick up or because of the lockdown, the incidents are actually really low, he added.
