 By Annpurna Devi
In a nation where women and children form the foundation of over a billion lives, their empowerment is not just a policy choice—it is the path to Bharat’s destiny. Under Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visionary governance, Bharat is experiencing a historic transformation that combines global ambition with human-centric progress. The story of New India is being shaped not only through economic milestones and global presence, but in the classrooms where young minds grow, the Anganwadi centres that nurture our children, and the homes where aspirations take root.
The Prime Minister’s unwavering commitment to ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ has become a guiding force for the Ministry of Women and Child Development anchoring our collective mission for Viksit [email protected] significant step in this journey has been the launch of the Bal Vivah Mukt Bharat campaign at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi, on 27th November last year.
With our bold and unwavering vision, we have reaffirmed our national commitment to end child marriage by 2030, so that every girl and boy can grow up safe, continue their education, and shape their future with pride and confidence. From the very beginning, we embraced a ‘Whole of Government and Whole of Society’ approach, recognizing that this challenge cannot be overcome through policy alone. It requires a collective strength - families, communities, frontline workers, institutions and the government standing shoulder to shoulder to break a centuries-old practice and protect the aspirations of every child. As a powerful reflection of our shared resolve, crores of people in villages and towns have come forward to take pledge to end child marriage.
‘Whole of Government’ Comes Together for a Bal Vivah Mukt Bharat
Child marriage is one of the most deeply embedded challenges our nation has inherited over generations. It often takes hold in communities facing limited access to education, resources, and awareness. These gaps—created by scarcity and unequal opportunity—have enabled the practice to persist, restricting countless children from realising the futures they deserve.
Today, that reality is transforming—decisively and for the better. Under the Modi Government, we are addressing the very roots that once nurtured this practice. With clear policy direction, well-designed schemes, and the renewed trust of communities in governance, the Ministry of Women and Child Development is at the forefront, dismantling the conditions that had enabled child marriage to persist. The progress we are witnessing is deliberate and determined, shaped by a governance model that places women and children at the heart of national development.
Our initiatives are designed to address root causes of vulnerability. We are committed to ensuring that every entitlement reaches the last mile—touching the life of the most vulnerable child in the remotest village and hamlet of our nation. Each intervention is crafted to handhold women and children through every stage of risk, ensuring that from the unborn child to the adolescent girl, every stage of life is safeguarded, prioritised, and empowered.
From Poshan Tracker and Poshan Bhi Padhai Bhi to Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan, and from the National Means-cum-Merit Scholarship Programme to the PM Vidyalaxmi Scheme, every initiative serves asa protective shield and a pathway towards a safe, dignified and equitable future for every child.
Leveraging technology as a catalyst for inclusion,The Poshan Tracker -Ministry’s flagship digital platform seamlessly connects 14 lakh Anganwadi centres with lactating mothers, children under six and adolescent girls. It has already created a robust safety net for more than 10.14 crore beneficiaries across the country. Complementing this digital enablement, Poshan Bhi Padhai Bhi stands as a transformative early childhood care and education initiative, ensuring that every pre-primary child receives holistic, high-quality early stimulation that builds the foundation for lifelong learning.
Our policies reflect not only intent but action. By anchoring reforms in real, sustained budgetary commitments and targeted investments, the Modi Government has made it unequivocally clear that protecting our children—particularly from vulnerabilities like child marriage—remains a national priority. The National Means-cum-Merit Scholarship Programme, with an allocation of Rs 1,827 crore for 2025-26 alone, ensures that no child drops out of school due to poverty, one of the most persistent drivers of child marriage. Meanwhile, the PM Vidyalaxmi Scheme provides crucial financial support to young women pursuing higher education.
The Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana has further strengthened this safety net by equipping young people with industry-relevant skills and providing them financial incentives and recognised government certification. Similarly, PM-DAKSH scheme empowers marginalised communities, especially SC, OBC and EWS youth who remain most vulnerable to child marriage. By equipping them with skills and opportunities, we are creating pathways for enriched, independent lives and setting a new precedent for generations to come.
The Impact: Closer to Bal Vivah Mukt Bharat
A few years ago, the idea of ending child marriage would have seemed distant, even unrealistic. But India has proved otherwise. Through clear policies, sustained action, focused grassroots efforts and measurable progress, we have challenged that belief and shown that change is not only possible but already underway.
This unprecedented shift is the outcome of thousands of small and big determined efforts. Our Child Marriage Prohibition Officers (CMPOs) have emerged as the backbone of this mission. In the past year alone, we have strengthened our frontline by appointing more than 37,000 CMPOs across the country. By equipping Anganwadi workers, empowering panchayats and strengthening district administrations with knowledge of child protection laws, we are ensuring that even the most marginalised families are linked to government schemes, children are brought back to school, and communities are made aware of the grave violation that child marriage represents.
So far, we have identified over 6,30,000 out-of-school girls and re-enrolled them in classrooms.
From silence to reporting, from stigma to support—India is choosing Change. Today, we are leveraging the latest technological advancements to address this with greater precision, transparency, and impact.The Bal Vivah Mukt Bharat portal embodies this progress—a publicly accessible, centralised platform that brings together information on Child Marriage Prohibition Officers across the nation, provides an effective mechanism for reporting cases, and strengthens awareness among stakeholders and citizens.
For the first time, the dream of a child-marriage-free India has evolved into a unified national mission. Every arm of the Government of India and every segment of society is moving together with shared purpose and determination. Guided by the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, we are not only protecting our children today but also laying the strong, confident and empowered foundations of Viksit Bharat.
As India approaches a decisive tipping point in its collective fight against child marriage, we offer the world a new model of how governance and community can work together to protect every child and end the global menace of child marriage with urgency and certainty. After all, these children are the torchbearers and the true ‘Sarathi’ of Viksit Bharat we all aspire to build.
(The author is the Union Minister of Women and Child Development, Government of India) |
