BENGALURU: To prevent child marriages, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) has come out with an initiative involving the school teacher. If the child remains absent for a considerable number of days on the trot without prior intimation, the teachers concerned will have to inform the local Child Welfare Committee (CWC). The principal concerned will be held responsible if the teachers fail to inform the CWC about students staying away from school for long.
A senior official from the Department of Public Instruction said that in many cases, teachers and headmasters know about a child getting married, but do not inform the officials concerned — either due to negligence or out of helplessness. "By making them accountable, we hope they will inform the CWC and try to prevent child marriages,'' the official said.
A memo issued by Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan planning director, which is available with The New Indian Express, says the CWC gets many cases related to child marriages as well as missing children complaints.
In Karnataka, there has been a decrease in girl child's attendance. The school management probes the absence of the girl children but drops it after not making any headway. And by the time it reaches the CWC, it is too late.
With the latest initiative, children can be tracked in time. Apart from CWC officials, teachers will also have to report the cases of children staying away from schools for many consecutive days to the Block Education Officer and District Deputy Director (administration).
Vasudeva Sharma, former CWC member and director of Child Rights Trust, said that although child marriage is rampant in Karnataka, most of the cases go unreported. "Usually, if a child is getting married, parents stop sending the child to school 10-15 days before the wedding day. In such cases, teachers should find out the whereabouts of the child. If they are unable to trace the child and smell something wrong, they can approach the CWC,'' he said.
In 2017, Karnataka State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (KSCPCR) had released a statement saying that the state accounts for 23.2 per cent of child marriages in India. The practice is prevalent in almost all the districts of the state, especially North Karnataka districts, including Yadgir, Belagavi, Bagalkote, Ballari and Kalaburagi.