Jamshedpur-based NGO Adarsh Seva Sansthan to make Jharkhand’s East Singhbhum district a child marriage-free district in a year time

Jamshedpur, November 27 : A Jamshedpur-based non-government organization “Adarsh Seva Sansthan” on Thursday have resolved to make Jharkhand’s East Singhbhum district a “child marriage-free district” in next one year.
Elevated by Union Government’s 100 days intensive action plan to eradicate child marriage across the country, Adarsh Seva Sansthan said it is committed to march shoulder to shoulder with government agencies to do away with child marriage in the district in a year time.
In an attempt to abolish the child marriage, the government has launched a 100-day intensive awareness drive on completion of one year child marriage-free India initiative as part of targeted strategy.
The focus would be on those areas where such marriages are being conducted including schools and educational institutions, religious sites and finally panchayats and municipal wards ensuring to eliminate centuries-old crime against child.
Adarsh SevaSansthan is associated with country’s largest network “Just Rights of Children”, which works in the field of child rights. It has more than 250 partner organizations engaged on the ground to eradicate the illegal practice in 451 districts of the country.
The network had succeeded to stop more than one lakh child marriage across the country last year.
To mark the completion of one year of “Bal Vivah Mukt Bharat” (Child marriage-free Bharat”) campaign today, Adarsh Seva Sansthan organized awareness programme and pledge ceremonies at various locations including schools, rural community and other institutions.
The NGO also aware the masses about the provisions of Child Marriage Prohibition Act and explained that whoever including guests, caterers, tent owners, band party, decorators or the priest solemnizing the marriage could face the legal action on ground of abetting child marriage.
The organization has maintained close co-ordination with law enforcing agencies and district administration and prevented many child marriages during last few years.
Hailing the government’s move to give impetus to the movement against child marriage, Prabha Jaiswal, Secretary of Adarsh Seva Sansthan, said the 100 days intensive campaign against child marriage will prove transformative step and bring us close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Vikshit Bharat mission.
Our daughters have been deprived of opportunities for centuries and subjected to exploitation, atrocities, rape, she asserted.
Referring unprecedent move of people’s representatives, government department, law enforcing agencies and community coming together, Jaiswal said it would give fresh energy and speed to union government’s commitment and efforts to end child marriage.
She said we are confident to wipe out child marriage within a year from the district with collective commitment and co-ordination and the crime will not find any escape route.
Elaborating about 100 days intensive awareness campaign, she said the campaign will be implemented in three phases and the last phase will conclude on International Women’s day on 8th March next.
The first phase will continue till 31st December, when schools, colleges and other educational institutions will be covered for awareness drive whereas religious places such as temple, mosque, church and gurudwara, where marriages are conducted to focus on service providers like Banquet hall and band parties, will be covered in the second phase from 1st to 31st January.
The final phase, which will continue till March 8, will target gram panchayats, municipality wards and involvement of community to end child marriage.