M’laya yet to frame rules to prohibit child marriage

NEW DELHI: Meghalaya is among the three states which are yet to frame rules for carrying out the provisions of the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, the Lok Sabha was informed on Friday.
“Meghalaya and Nagaland have not framed the rules as child marriage is not in prevalence but they have adopted the Act,” said Union Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi in a written reply.
Meghalaya had figured among the top 10 states with highest percentage of child marriages among both boys and girls in a report published in June last year.
The report, ‘Statistical Analysis of Child Marriage in India’, compiled by NGO Young Lives in collaboration with the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights, was based on the 2011 census and stated that Meghalaya recorded 2.22 per cent child marriages among girls and 2.46 per cent among boys.
Uttar Pradesh is another state that is yet to frame rules for the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act (PCMA), 2006, that authorises state governments to frame rules as envisaged under the Act.
Altogether 619 cases of child marriage were registered under the PCMA in 2015 and 2016. The highest number of such cases during the period was reported from Tamil Nadu (132) followed by Karnataka (86). (PTI)