GUWAHATI, SEP 5:

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Saturday welcomed the United Nations for designating November 27 as International Day for the Elimination of Child, Early and Forced Marriage, maintaining it was an affirmation of this northeastern state’s firm steps against underage weddings.

He also said that the designation of the date coincides with the Assam government announcing an “unapologetic campaign” against child and forced marriages, continuing its crackdown against it.

“Even the UN now agrees to what we in Assam have been saying and professing since our last term — child or forced marriage has no place in our society and needs to be cracked down upon,” Sarma said in a post on X.

He maintained that the declaration of November 27 as International Day for Elimination of Child, Early and Forced Marriage will act as a global support for eliminating the vice, he said and shared a copy of the UN announcement with his post.

The chief minister said the state government’s efforts against the vice in the past few years have led to over 12,000 cases being registered, more than 11,000 arrests and an 81 per cent drop in child marriages across 20 districts, along with drastic reductions in teenage pregnancies and increases in female higher education enrollment.

“Coincidentally, we had already announced that in the month of November, we will be taking up an unapologetic campaign against child and forced marriage and bring all the perpetrators to justice, securing the future of our daughters,” he said.

Sarma said the UN declaration shows that Assam’s efforts were never in isolation; it was about eliminating a crime which is a global problem.

“Assam’s fight against child marriage ignited a national narrative, and now carries the weight of global recognition. Our commitment remains unchanged — a society free of child marriage,” he added.

The Assam government had launched its intensified crackdown against child marriage in 2023, during the first term of Sarma as chief minister. (Source: PTI)