Agartala (Tripura) Jul 9: In the battle against child marriage, a significant transformation in Sepahijala District of Tripura is witnessed as 10 villages earned ‘Aspiring Child Marriage Free’ certification.
The District Administration made the announcement on June 29 during a virtual event at Bishalgarh under the Sepahijala District. The certification was done for preventing underage marriage in the last six months.
Revealing the name of the villages which became ‘Aspiring Child Marriage Free’, District Magistrate of Sepahijala Dr. Siddharth Shiv Jaiswal said Promod Nagar, Doyarampara, Twima, JK Nagar, East Ratanpur, and West Ratanpur under Jampuijala RD Block; Rambagar and Batharmura in Charilam RD Block; and Rampada Para and Padmininagar under Nalchar RD Block.
There are a total of 178 villages in the district and the administration is eyeing to make the entire district ‘child marriage free’. To attain the goal, the district administration has introduced a new campaign titled ‘Mission Sankalp’, launched in collaboration with the Education, Social Welfare & Social Education Departments, among others.
Key components of Mission Sankalp include:
- Boosting community awareness and sensitization
- Promoting education and skill development for girls
- Strengthening institutional monitoring and reporting systems
- Activating Village-level Child Protection Committees
- Engaging schools, Anganwadi centers, and Panchayati Raj bodies in sustained outreach programs
‘Child marriage free’ Status Verification
Dr. Jaiswal highlighted that the certification process followed a comprehensive three-level verification to ensure authenticity. The process started with assessments by the Block-level officials based on village records and field data. This was followed by on-site inspections and consultations by the respective Sub-Divisional Magistrates (SDMs) and their teams. The final approval was granted by the Child Welfare Committee (CWC), Sepahijala.
Based on the CWC, Sepahijala approved 10 villages as ‘Aspiring Child Marriage free’ confirming that no underage marriage had occurred in these villages over the past six months.
Notably, a Rising Child Marriage Free Village (silver category) status implies no child marriage is reported in the last 12 months in that village and if no underage marriage is reported in the last 24 model, the village earns a Model Child Marriage Free Village (gold category) certification.
Community Leaders Felicitated
Recognizing the role of community leaders in preventing the child marriage, the Pradhans and Secretaries of the 10 villages were felicitated and awarded at the event. Their active involvement and commitment were instrumental in achieving this milestone.
The achievement of the Sepahijala District Administration reminded the courageous fight of school girl belonging to minority community from Belonia in South Tripura who bravely fought against marrying her off.
| Also Read: Tripura student Jyotsna Akhtar: A Beacon of empowerment defying Child Marriage |
Turning against her parents, Jyotsna sought help from local authorities and successfully prevented her marriage. She also received ‘Rastriya Bal Puruskar’ from President Droupadi Murmu.
