Assam has launched an intensive initiative to eradicate child marriage in 30 of its high-risk districts within the next year, aligning with the national goal of a child-marriage-free India by 2030. This ambitious drive coincides with the first anniversary of the Government of India's Bal Vivah Mukt Bharat campaign, which was launched with a 100-day action plan.
The Assam government has directed departments and field officials to support the three-phase plan actively. Just Rights for Children (JRC), a network of over 250 NGOs, including eight in Assam, is also contributing to the effort. JRC reported preventing 10,114 child marriages in Assam over the past year. Nationally, the network has prevented over one lakh child marriages in the same period. Between April 2023 and November 2025, JRC prevented 435,205 child marriages across the country using its "3P" framework of Protection, Prevention, and Prosecution.
Assam has one of the highest child marriage prevalence rates in India. According to the National Family Health Survey-5 (NFHS-5) data from 2019-2021, 31.8% of women aged 20–24 in Assam were married before the age of 18, compared to the national average of 23.3%. Several districts in Assam report even higher rates, with Dhubri exceeding 50%. South Salmara-Mankachar, Darrang, Nagaon, Goalpara, Bongaigaon, and Barpeta districts have rates above 40%. Eight districts fall between 30–39.9%, and ten more are between 23–29.9%.
Community groups, faith leaders, and panchayats are crucial in eliminating child marriage. JRC aims to make one lakh villages child-marriage free in the next year.
The Assam government's approach of taking legal action against child marriage led to an 81% decline in such cases in 20 of its 35 districts between 2021-22 and 2023-24, according to Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. He has vowed to eradicate child marriage completely in Assam by 2026.
The state government launched the Mukhya Mantrir Nijut Moina Asoni (MMNMA) scheme to provide financial support to female students, aiming to eliminate child marriages. Each eligible girl student in Class 11 will receive ₹1000 per month for a maximum of ten months, totaling ₹10,000 per year. Those in Graduation First Year will receive ₹1250 per month for a maximum of ten months, totaling ₹12,500 per year. Students in Post-Graduation First year will receive ₹2500 per month for a maximum of ten months, totaling ₹25,000 per year.
Inspired by the Government of India's 100-Day Intensive Action Plan to eliminate child marriage, the Assam Centre for Rural Development (ACRD) has pledged to make five districts—Kamrup, Kamrup Metro, Baksa, Dibrugarh, and Lakhimpur—completely child marriage-free within the next year.
Four villages in Assam's Cachar district have been declared child marriage-free. These villages are Rukni Part IV, Bhairabpur Part I, Rosekandy Grant I, and Rosekandy Grant II.
The Ministry of Women and Child Development launched a 100-day intensive campaign to mark one year of Bal Vivah Mukt Bharat, concluding on March 8, 2026.
