SONEPUR: In December last year, Reena Deep fought against her parents and society to stall her own marriage as she was a minor. The 17-year-old girl was successful in her fight and has since, taken up the cudgels for stopping other child marriages in her area.
In the last 11 months, she has stopped four child marriages and is determined to stop the social evil of child marriages in the village Mahule under Kharjura panchayat of Sonepur. Daughter of farm labourers Jagdish Deep and Nirbani Deep, she belongs to the SC community.
When schools closed down last year due to Covid-19, her father asked her to drop out and fixed her wedding to a 24-year-old youth in a neighbouring village. The marriage was to be solemnised on December 30, 2020. As Reena was keen on studying and had seen the negative impact of child marriage on the lives of other girls in her community, she refused. But her parents were difficult to convince. For them, her marriage weighed more than her education. “But I refused to cow down and that infuriated them because early marriages are still a part of our social customs,” she said.
Determined to fight till her marriage is put off, Reena informed the local anganwadi worker and ICDS supervisor about it a few days before her wedding. Members of village-level Child Marriage Prohibition Committee intervened and visited her house to counsel her parents. After knowing the implications of violating the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006, they signed an undertaking that they would not get their minor daughter married off till the age of 18 to avoid legal action.
For Reena, though, this wasn’t the end of the problem. Realising that girls her age might be going through the same ordeal, she decided to launch a campaign and make people in her village and nearby areas like Uperfabsi, Majhifabsi, Khaliapali villages aware about the social evil. Along with anganwadi workers and the ICDS supervisor, Reena began meeting her friends and their parents, village child marriage prohibition committee members, Childline officials and sarpanch to spread awareness on the issue. After several rounds of meetings, she found support from a majority of people who vowed to stop child marriage.
In the last one year, Reena has single-handedly stopped four child marriages in her village. When she receives information about a possible child marriage, the girl takes the help of the anganwadi workers and committee members to intervene. Her courage to say no to her wedding has inspired many other girls in her community.
“I have so far reached out to all girls in my school and all of them have decided to complete their basic education first and then think of marriage after attaining 18 years of age”, she said, thanking the local administration for all help in prohibiting child marriages.
Reena has also taken re-admission in the school and will appear for matriculation examination next year.
Sarpanch of Kharjura panchayat Anupama Sethi said Reena is an inspiration for both boys and girls in the block. “We will continue to support her in her endeavour to make all villagers aware about the ills of child marriage”, she said.
Curbing Early Marriages
This year, the Sonepur administration has stopped 59 child marriages in the district
In 2019 and 2020, 20 and 33 child marriages were stopped
753 villages in the district are child marriage free
Administration has launched Sankalp initiative under which, it is taking steps to sensitise parents about the adverse impact of the early marriages of their daughters
Seventeen-year-old Reena Deep refused to get married before attaining the legal age. Realising many other minor girls are staring at the same plight, she launched a campaign against the social evil and stopped four such marriages since last year. Sanjay Kumar Mishra brings out her story