A CORRESPONDENT
PALASBARI: Buoyed by the Government of India's pathbreaking 100-Day Intensive Action Plan aimed at uprooting child marriage nationwide, Assam Centre for Rural Development (ACRD) has vowed to work hand in hand with all agencies to declare Kamrup district child marriage free within a year. The '100 Days Intensive Awareness Campaign', launched nationwide to mark one year of Bal Vivah Mukt Bharat, has outlined a targeted strategy focusing on schools and educational institutions, religious places where marriages are solemnized, marriage-related service providers, and, finally, panchayats and municipal wards to ensure an end of this centuries-old crime against children. Assam Centre for Rural Development is a partner of Just Rights for Children (JRC), India's largest network of over 250 organizations working to end child marriage in 451 districts. In the last one year alone, the network prevented over one lakh child marriages across the country.
To mark one year of 'Bal Vivah Mukt Bharat' campaign launched on November 27, 2024, Assam Centre for Rural Development also conducted awareness programmes across schools, institutions, and village communities, and organized pledge ceremonies throughout the district. The NGO also sensitized communities about the provisions of the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, and explained that anyone from service providers such as caterers, guests, tent providers, faith leaders solemnizing child marriage are liable for punishment. Working with law enforcement agencies and district administration for the last few years, the NGO Assam Centre for Rural Development has already stopped more than 300 hundred child marriage in the last year alone.
Enthused by the government's announcement that will give further impetus to their ongoing drive, Executive Director Prena Changkakati said, "These 100 days of intensive action have the power to change the course of this country and bring us closer to the Prime Minister's vision of a Viksit Bharat. For generations, our girls have been denied opportunities and pushed into abuse, exploitation, and rape in the name of marriage. This unprecedented convergence of elected representatives, government departments, law enforcement, and communities is a game changer in India's commitment to end child marriage. With this coordination and collective resolve, we are confident that we will make our district child marriage free within a year and there is no veil that can hide this crime anymore."
The 100 days of Intensive Awareness Campaign, divided into three spells, will conclude on March 8, 2026 which also marks the International Women's Day. The first spell (till December 31) will focus on awareness generation through schools, colleges and educational institutes. The second spell, from January 1 to January 31, would focus on religious places as well as marriage-related service providers including temples, mosques, churches, gurudwaras, wedding halls, and band parties. In the third and final spell till March 8, focus would shift on gram panchayats and municipal wards to strengthen community-level engagement and ownership.
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