Culture

Taking the fight against child marriage to the last mile, West Bengal Women and Child Development and Social Welfare Minister, Dr Shashi Panja, flagged off a unique ‘Bal Vivah Mukti Rath’ from the state capital. The Rath, adorned with a pledge wall and awareness messages against child marriage, will travel through villages and towns across the state till March 8.

 

The Bal Vivah Mukti Rath, an initiative of Just Rights for Children (JRC), is part of the Government of India’s 100-day intensive nationwide campaign to end child marriage. Notably, Just Rights for Children (JRC) is among the country’s largest child rights networks, with over 250 NGO partners working across more than 450 districts to strengthen child protection systems and end child marriage by 2030. The ceremony was organized in the state capital by JRC partner BITAN Institute for Training Awareness and Networking.

 

 

Equipped with powerful slogans spread both as posters and through loudspeakers, along with a pledge-signing board, the Bal Vivah Mukti Rath is designed to reach the most remote and marginalised communities along its route. While four-wheelers will cover routes with major roads and better accessibility, the most remote villages with poor connectivity will be reached through motorcycle or cycle caravans across the state.

 

Reaffirming the West Bengal government’s stance to ensure dignity and safety of the state’s daughters and end child marriage, Women and Child Development and Social Welfare Minister, Dr Shashi Panja, said, “Our government is committed to ending child marriage and we stand united in every effort to achieve this target. Such initiatives will help in generating awareness among communities. The schemes initiated by the state government, such as the Kanyashree Scheme, are already showing results, with more and more young girls availing of them. We are not far away from becoming a child marriage-free state.” Also present during the ceremony was Pooja Panja, Councillor at Kolkata Municipal Corporation.

 

 

Notably, West Bengal, which has the highest prevalence of child marriage as per the National Family Health Survey V (2019–21), has been working aggressively to empower girls through education and curb child marriages. For this, the West Bengal government has rolled out two incentive-based schemes, Kanyashree Prakalpa and Rupashree Prakalpa. While Kanyashree provides annual scholarships and a one-time grant to promote education and prevent early marriage, Rupashree offers a one-time financial aid of Rs. 25,000 for marriage expenses.

 

Speaking about the significance of this campaign on wheels, , Shubhrangshu Guhathakhurata, Treasurer,  BITAN, said, “The Bal Vivah Mukti Rath carries continuous messages against child marriage and aims to reach the most vulnerable sections of society where the prevalence of child marriage is much higher. By building strong grassroots connections with the participation of panchayats, teachers, and Anganwadi workers, we are ensuring that the message reaches loud and clear at people’s doorsteps. Only when awareness reaches and emerges from within the community will we be able to save our children from child marriage.”

 

During its journey, the Bal Vivah Mukti Rath will engage panchayats, district administrations, CMPOs, and other government officials to reach out to communities for awareness and pledges. The journey, which culminates on International Women’s Day, will cover schools, gram sabhas, religious institutions, and historical sites, spreading the message through nukkad nataks, cultural programmes, and survivors’ stories. Moreover, similar Bal Vivah Mukti Raths by JRC are currently travelling across 25 states.

 

Praising the West Bengal government’s resolute stance against child marriage, Bidhan Chandra Singh, National Convenor, Child Marriage Free India, said, “The world is witnessing India’s resolve to eliminate child marriage. This fight is gaining ground by uniting all stakeholders, ensuring every family is engaged, every child is safeguarded, and every village progresses towards becoming child marriage-free. This event in West Bengal is a reflection of the nation’s political commitment to end this crime by 2030.”

 

Child Marriage Free India is the flagship campaign of Just Rights for Children. In the last year alone, the network stopped almost 198,628 child marriages across the country, out of which 11,938 child marriages were stopped in West Bengal.

For more details, please contact - Jitendra Parmar: 8595950825