A few months ago, a 15-year-old girl from Arilova approached officials of the Women and Child Welfare Department, complaining that her parents were forcing her to get married to her maternal uncle.
The officials soon summoned the parents for counselling and during the session, the parents confessed that they had fixed the marriage of the minor girl, who was an Intermediate student, with her maternal uncle as he was a rich man with properties in Gajuwaka.
According to officials, many such cases had come to their notice, especially from the rural and Agency areas of Visakhapatnam district.
“In Visakhapatnam Agency, parents marrying off their minor daughters is not a rare occurrence. In many cases, the girls do not even know what exactly a marriage is. But the parents perform the marriages in a grand manner,” District Child Protection Officer (DCPO) A. Satyanarayana said.
Measures being implemented by the administration to prevent child marriages and protect girl children appear to be falling short of yielding the desired results as the marriages of minors continues to be a matter of concern in various parts of the district.
Statistics suggest that 21 child marriages were averted by officials of District Child Protection Unit (DCPU) of the Women and Child Welfare Department in the district in 2018 as compared to the 31 in 2017. In 2016, about 16 child marriages were thwarted in the nick of time.
But the drop in numbers appears to bring no cheer to officials, who say that apart from the Agency areas, many illiterate as well as educated parents perform child marriages not only in rural areas but in city limits too.
According to sources, child marriages are being performed in Anakapalle, Narsipatnam, K. Kotapadu, S. Rayavaram, Payakarapeta and several other rural mandals. Same is the case in Arilova, Peda Gantyada, Pendurthi and a few other areas in the city.
Unreported cases
According to officials, many child marriages in the Agency and rural areas do not even come to light. Since 2012, around 160 marriages have been averted in Visakhapatnam district, but officials say those secretly performed could be over 1,000.
In an attempt to curb such cases, the district administration has formed teams at several vulnerable villages. Headed by the Collector, the teams with Village Revenue Officers (VROs) and panchayat secretaries as its members have been assigned to keep a strict vigil on child marriages.
It has also been made mandatory for the VROs to bring the child marriages in their locality to the notice of their higher-ups. However, closely-knit communities in the villages seldom let out information on child marriages, which ends up becoming a hindrance for officials.
“In villages and hamlets, the VRO enjoys friendly relations with many families. They turn a blind eye to child marriages planned by their neighbours and relatives. Hence, many such cases go unreported. Moreover, some officials also take bribes to remain silent,” Mr. Satyanarayana said when asked why many marriages do not come to their notice.
Peer pressure
Apart from the fear associated with breaking from the tradition of performing marriages at an early age, peer pressure forces many parents to marry off their minor children.
“I had to perform my daughter’s marriage when she was 14. If she would have pursued higher education, finding a suitable groom in our community would have been difficult. Moreover, we have to give additional dowry if the girls are aged. Pressure from relatives, society and fear of love marriages also lead many to perform child marriages,” D. Lakshmana Rao (name changed), a resident of Paderu, says.
