Guwahati: The legal age of marriage for women has been increased from 18 to 21 years.
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday passed a proposal to raise the legal of women from 18 to 21, the same as men.
Following Cabinet approval, the Government would introduce a modification to the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006, as well as amendments to the Special Marriage Act and personal laws such as the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, according to the newspaper.
The proposal was approved based on recommendations made by the Centre’s task force, led by Jaya Jaitly, to NITI Aayog in December 2020. The task force was formed to look into “matters pertaining to the age of motherhood, imperatives of lowering MMR (Maternal Mortality Rate), improvement of nutritional levels, and related issues.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi revealed the proposal at his Independence Day address in 2020, which was more than a year ago.
“The health of daughters and sisters is a continual concern for our government. To protect the daughters from hunger, they must marry at the appropriate age “In his speech, the Prime Minister said.