Mumbai, May 31: Maharashtra’s Minister for Women and Child Development, Aditi Tatkare, announced on Saturday that achieving a ‘Child Marriage-Free Maharashtra’ is the state’s ultimate goal. She stated that the department has established a capable, dynamic, and modern system to completely eradicate child marriages across the state.
Moving beyond traditional law enforcement, the ‘Child Marriage-Free Maharashtra’ campaign actively involves citizens at all levels.
The minister highlighted that significant results have been achieved through this collective, community-driven approach. The administration successfully prevented 1,400 child marriages last year and 1,450 in the current year.
According to Minister Tatkare, child marriages are deeply linked to socio-economic vulnerabilities. The Women and Child Development Department is focusing on addressing these root causes directly.
She pointed out that a major demographic factor is the influx of migrant workers across the state, particularly in the Marathwada region. As parents work as daily wage laborers, leaving their 12 to 14-year-old daughters home alone raises serious safety concerns. This insecurity often drives worried families to marry off their daughters at a young age.
To tackle this issue, the department has established special ‘Bal Gruh’ shelters where these young girls can stay safely and continue their education without interruptions. Additionally, to ensure ongoing support for migrant workers’ young children, a modern tracking portal has been launched. While these children typically attend Anganwadis in their ancestral villages, the digital system ensures easy enrollment in the nearest local Anganwadi when families migrate for work, preventing any child from being left out.
Emphasizing a zero-tolerance policy, the Women and Child Development Department is taking aggressive steps to ensure that the law acts as a genuine deterrent.
Minister Tatkare confirmed that they have begun filing cases not only against parents who arrange child marriages but also against priests who officiate these ceremonies, intermediaries who assist, and guests who attend. She is personally overseeing this process.
She further stated that this strict legal stance has sent a powerful message to society.
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