A woman’s legal age to marry has always been the talk of the town. And once again is in the news as the government plans to revise it as the role of women continues to increase in education and professional life.
The legal age for a woman to marry had been fixed at 18 years in 1978 and the legal age of a man to get married has been 21 years since then. However, now the government is planning to revise the former from 18 to 21.
The task force will suggest ways to encourage higher education among women, explore the impact of marital age on infant mortality rate, maternal mortality rate, the mental health of the mother, nutritional status of both the mother and child, sex ratio at birth and child sex ratio. It will also come up with relevant amendments in the existing laws to implement its recommendations. Moreover, it will be provided with secretarial assistance by Niti Ayog.
As per the 1978 amendment of the Sharda Act of 1929, the marital age of women in India remains 18 while for men it is 21 years. The task force, therefore, will also focus on removing the gender parity in the marital age and raising the women’s marital age from 18 to 21 years, Tribune India reported.
(Picture – Reuters Photo/Amit Dave)
