Sanju Kumari: The recommendation to lower the age of marriage from 21 to 18 for boys sounds really unsound. How can we expect the teenagers to shoulder the responsibilities that come with marriage? Marriage is the foundation of a harmonious and enriching family life and the basic building block of our society. Marriage is the wedding of two souls, and trust, maturity and understanding are the bedrock of it. It is not a casual relationship, but one that carries many obligations and benefits affecting husbands and wives, fathers and mothers, sons and daughters, and thus every individual in society. To acquire these responsibilities a person should come of age and should be properly seasoned.
If we look at the norm in India, it reveals that the wife is younger than husband. So, will not this recommendation push more child girls into matrimony? Will not it hinder the adolescent education? Will not it increase the unnecessary population? Till 18 yrs they are supposed to have finished their education and secured a "breadwinner" role before they marry, whereas fewer women were going to school, and they didn't need to establish a career, since they were going to be homemakers.
I wonder for whom this recommendation is being made. Perhaps it will not affect much the families who are well educated and good at their earning. But, by doing so we are allowing poverty and tribal judicially to go for child marriage.
Greeshma
Gopal:The move to bring down the age of marriage is
a foolish step. I really don't understand the brains working
behind such a gimmick. What has happened to our lawmakers?
Marriage is not a puppet show. A man and a woman marry not
for the sake of fun. It's a sacred institution for whole
life. Girls have big career dreams today. They want to be
highly educated. Early marriages can shatter all their dreams.
Not only that, early marriages can also result in lot of
medical problems for girls. By thinking of reducing the
age of marriage our lawmakers are killing the dreams of
many girls in this country. I sincerely hope that better
sense prevails and the move to bring down the age of marriage
is dropped at the earliest.
Nitin G Gokarn:
Our country is already over populated and we must examine
persuasive measures to arrest and control the growth in
population. If we reduce the marriageable age, the probability
of young couples entering wedlock will be accelerated and
with this would increase the chances of early birth for
their kids. For men the age should be 24 and for women it
may be 21. If a couple gets married early, the chances of
extra marital affairs in the 30s are known to be prevalent
in large numbers given that the early sheen in the marriage
wears off. With increasing age comes maturity and perhaps,
better accumulated savings to look after the family and
kids when born. We must certainly not bring down the age
for marriage. In fact age is no criteria- it should be economic
stability and ability to support a family on one's own income.
John Alexander:
Technically any legislative fiat or statute to bring
down age of marriage is perfectly alright but few caveats
are well in order. The physical, psychological and intellectual
maturity of both boys and girls is not perfectly right,
because the economic dimension has to be not left unaddressed.
Uneducated, impoverished, economically unstable boys and
girls would add more burden to the society at large. It
is something similar to the voting age of young people which
has come down to 18 years, but how many are aware of the
problems of the nation etc. And to boot poverty makes them
just the electoral fodder to any scheming-cum-manupulative
electoral candidate and his henchmen and cronies doubling
up as election agents-cum-canvassers. Legal propriety and
legitmacy is poor fig-leaf to the debilitating and horrible
condition noticeable in the underbelly of our nation. So
the move is ill-advised by all means.
Madhu Agrawal:
Law Commission's report recommending lowering of marriage-age
for boys to 18 making it at par with that of girls is a
realistic measure to effectively check child-marriages.
Otherwise also in a society desiring equal status for men
and women, it was not proper to have different marriageable
age-limits for boys and girls. However since law provides
a minimum age of 18 for marriages, it is not proper to define
a contradictory rule of 16 years as consent for sex even
for 'married' girls which should also be 18 years. With
such recommendations given legal status, stress should be
to prevent child-marriages by force. Unfortunately, even
political rulers and heavyweights grace child-marriages
with their benign presence. Patronizing child-marriages
should bar persons to contest elections. Commission's recommendation
to amend Hindu Succession Act for keeping fathers at par
with mothers in property-rights of deceased sons is also
realistic for giving equal status to men and women.
Kuarpal: It
is a very absurd proposal by the government, we are already
struggling with the population problem and this proposal
will work as a petrol in an open fire. We are second most
populated country in the world. As per 1991 Census India's
population was 84,39,30,861 and now it is above one million.
India's population is increasing 1.95% every year.
On the one hand government is spending so much money to overcome this problem and on the other they are proposing this type of foolish proposal of bringing down boy's age of marriage from 21 to 18. I don't understand what government is trying to do by this proposal. If government would have proposed to increase age of marriage of girls from 18 to 21 then it definitely would have been appreciated by all.
It is a well known fact that in India there is trend of marrying 2-3 years younger girl, so if this proposal is passed then there will be more cases of child marriage and it will also deprive girls from higher education. We all know that today women are playing a vital role in India's growth as they are aware and educated.
If this is implemented then people will marry early and as we know after marriage there is lot of responsibility on shoulders of couples and as a result they will leave their studies in between which will affect Indian economy very badly. No doubt our growth will come to a standstill. So the government should think of every aspect before implementing it.
Mahendra
Garwa: Indian constitution is the largest in the world.
In 1989 by the amendment we changed the age of marriage
and it became 21 years for boys and 18 for girls. However
the present time situation is different. If men can vote
at 18, they can also marry at that age; the Law Commission
has suggested reducing the age limit by three years from
21 and declaring marriage below 16 as illegal.
But, first of all the Commission should know that India's population has already reached 2nd spot in the word. I think that decision can increase our problems in future.
I believe the age for girls should be increased to 21, as well. Usually at 18, boys just finish their schooling and hardly have an earning capacity. At 18, what do youngsters, especially boys, really know apart from spending money and having fun? Also, marriage brings so many liabilities with it, which in my opinion, cannot be dealt with and handled the way they are desired by young boys.
Chinmay
Vyas: This is an age of science and technology, globalisation
and economic growth of the nations of the world.India too
has to keep pace with world standards in every sphere of
life. And if this is not maintained it will result in despair.
Hence I am not in favour of bringing down the age of marriage.
Most of us think that if one can cast a vote at the age
of 18 and is mature enough to elect his leader on the basis
of experience and observation then why not to get married
at the age of 18?
Paradoxically getting married is much more responsible task than that of electing a leader - Marriage means you have to bear the wholesome responsibility of your partner also and taking care of the family's future plans and making dreams come true. It requires taking of wise decisions on time. How can one handle other person without being sound himself?
At age 18 one is not capable for taking decisions regarding marriage.
Sushmita
Shrivastava: No, the move to lower marriage age is
totally unjustified since the boys are not mature to lead
a married life at the age of 18. Rather the need of the
hour is to raise the marriage age for both boys and girls.
The boys do not complete their education at the age of 18.
They usually get self-sufficient when they are in mid or
late twenties and, in my opinion, it is the right age for
them to marry. If boys and girls marry at a too young age
then it will lead to further worsening of the already serious
problem of population explosion. If they have kids at the
young age, they can't bring them up properly and will not
be able to provide the emotional support that the children
require since they themselves will not be emotionally mature.
In our country the bane of child marriages is persisting
and only half-hearted attempts are made to check them. The
truth is that the villagers, illiterates and semi-literates
get married at a very young age and marriage at the young
age is responsible for our exploding population. Population
is like a bomb. If we allow the population to increase unchecked
then time will come when we will have no space to live,
no food to eat and it will be a big tragedy.
Satish Kumar
Singh: In general we should admit that understanding
comes by age. I think, this is not wrong conception. Except
some exceptional circumstances, understanding does not come
by age. Overall through experience only, we make our dreams
come true in life.
So far as marriage is concerned, understanding is necessary. In fact marriage is not only marriage. Instead of marriage it is also means of concerning two families. In other words through marriage we find good lifepartner as well as good families, so that in case of any trouble they can help us. Vice versa is also applicable in this context. As we know, nowadays events of divorce are mounting. Young Couples do not understand requirements of each other. Consequently events of early break-up are escalating. Though events of inter-caste and inter-religion marriage are growing. Yet longevity of such type of marriages is not longer. De facto such type of couples do not get any protection from their families.
In ancient and medieval times too particularly kings and Nababs used to strengthen their power through marriage. They got married after full planning. It should be as well. Ultimately this is the question of our life.
Nowadays concept of micro family is in force. Perception of joint family is disintegrating fast. Youths don't believe upon significance of know-how.
Perhaps due to this changing scenario of society, we are compelled to think about bringing down age of marriage. But, in my opinion this move will not be justified.
As per existing age for marriage, girls will be eligible for marriage after attaining 18 years and boys will be eligible after attaining 21 years.
No doubt some girls and boys are taking big decisions in their early ages. Some youngsters become CEO of big companies at the same time some become IAS. But these examples don't prove that every youngster is in a position to take big decisions in his/her early age. Most of the youngsters are not able to understand even their requirements after attaining age of 25 years. So, in my opinion, move to bring down age of marriage universally will not be acceptable. If this happens, activities of child marriage will also rise. Young couple will also not impart good education to their children. As a result, there will be possibility of anarchy in society.
In a nutshell, we have some examples in this regard. But in reality those examples are only exceptions. We are not living in the west. In west the lifestyle of children is completely different. Children learn to live alone as well as take their decisions independently at an early age. At the first instance, we may be impressed from this state of affairs but along with this fact older age people are neglected there as well. We must keep this fact in our mind.
dewyankees@yahoo.co.in:
It is not justified because children do not complete
their education. All rights should be given to the children
to complete their education because we are the future guns
of India. We need to get knowledge to become gems. If we
get married at the age of 12 or 13 we won't be able to process
our mind properly. We need proper guidance from our parents
not discrimination. Today our India is increasing day by
day, we need to get on with the speed it is going not to
create speedbreakers in its path. Children should be inspired
to achieve their aims. Parents should not keep their hand
in middle of their path. Giving marriage in early ages may
cause huge damage to the respective family, because at the
age of 15 we do not know the exact meaning of family, how
do family reside, and what are the functions of a family.
When we don't understand the exact meaning there is no point
in creating a family and giving marriage to a boy who has
not completed his learning age.
Syed Zia Ul Hasan
Naqvi: The Law Commission has suggested in its report
to the government that the marriage age should be reduced
by three years ie it should be eighteen years instead of
twenty one years. In support of its suggestion, argument
is when a youth of eighteen years is eligible for casting
his vote in elections then why he should not be allowed
for marriage at the same age.
But, in my opinion in this cut-throat competition times, the move to bring down age of marriage is out and out not justified because during the same period students usually pay more concentration towards their studies and in planning their careers. In case if they are allowed for marriage at the age of eighteen years then it will prove an impediment for their careers and impinge their bright future.
Apart from this our country is fighting from many problems such as population, poverty, unemployment and illiteracy etc. Under such circumstances it seems to be incongruous for a youth to marry at an early age.
Marriage is not merely a contract; it is also a responsibility on the shoulders of spouses. So marriage should be at an age when the persons are mature, well established and seasoned.
RK
Kutty: First and foremost to give an honest answer
to this question by taking India as a whole is very difficult.
Even after setting an age for marriage of boys and girls,
yet child marriage or below age marriages happens in different
places in our country. Now, if the government decided to
bring down the age of marriage then under what criteria
they have decided so and whether the age old traditions,
customs and practices in vogue amongst various communities
in India too they considered while taking such a decision
et. al are quite questionable. Here, when we have such patterns
that even our judiciary too scares to tread the traditionalist's
domain, who cares to keep credence to the government's decisions.
In the case of most of our urban female, the parents get
their birth certificates issued from the Municipal Corporations/
Municipalities by altering/reducing the age at a premium
to suit their convenience. They know the age that actually
count is the one
shown in the Higher Secondary School Leaving Certificates which normally is the altered date of birth. And according to Indian tradition, no girl/woman would like to spell her correct age/date of birth unless and until one pursues it hard.
Of course, in this age of gender non-discrimination, where women empowerment is a subject hotly pursued `who knows now the next President of the US would be a woman when now Lady Hillary Clinton bounced back again into the fray, the decision of our government to bring parity in age of marriage may be a step in the right direction to show our own inclination for gender equality. If it is so, then we must have the guts and courage to bring in a bill or legislation not for 33% reservation for women but 50% reservation for women in all fields of governance. That would be a real step in the right direction where both men and women can work shoulder to shoulder in divergent fields/sectors of our march towards an over-all development/prosperity of the nation.
RJ
Khurana: It defies logic why the Law Commission recommended
lowering the age of marriage for boys and girls to 18. A
young boy of 18 is not mature enough to take upon himself
a family's responsibilities. At that age, he is most likely
to be in college or might be a school graduate or dropout
looking for a job. For that matter, even 21 is not the right
age for marriage as that is roughly the time when a young
man is just graduating from college.
The minimum age for boys for marriage should be 25. As for girls, these days they are no less career-oriented and want to stand on their own feet before they marry. That does not mean the Government is forcing people to marry at 18, but such a law will be prone to abuse. Lowering of marriageable age to 18 may also be viewed as inviting population explosion in an already overpopulated country, wiping out all the positive effects of a high growth rate.
SS
Chitwadgi: It would be dangerous to bring down the age
of marriage. The present entertainments particularly TV
comprise a distorted picture of man-woman courtship. Many
youngsters generally indulge in making intimacy and continue
to be proud of more intimate relations specially boys and
also girls in their adolescence, not aware of the consequences
of jealousy amongst their friends. Adolescence is defined
as a period from 10-19 years. It is a transition phase between
childhood and adulthood characterized by acceleration of
physical, psychosocial and behavioral changes. It is a period
of learning and shaping attitudinal behavioral and social
responsibilities. Therefore though friendship between boys
and girls is good but not indulging in sexual relationship.
Bringing down age of marriage will certainly enter into period of adolescence. In fact, the present age prescribed needs to be increased by a year or two, to cross over to reach the vigorous adulthood. As an adult a boy or a girl reaches a maturing age but still in learning the skills required to share rigors of life to follow.
India is heavily populated and any early marriage in the brought down age would spell a disaster by way of birth of a child. This added child from very young couple would be more a problem than any solution. Boys and girls often enter into an act of eating the prohibited fruit. Legally the age of marriage should never be brought down the present age prescribed for many more reasons of nutrition of such a mother and their child, of course, that of a boy. The scenery in urban and rural is quite different. In tribal areas things go out of control. In rural India education has still not reached the standard of appreciation of health consequences of very young age couples.
Department of family welfare, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare New Delhi have produced a manual to guide the children of adolescences stage by trained personnel. The details of the manual show to avoid the move of bringing down age of marriage. Before concluding the children need that type of education including on sex, which will take care of growing children not to fall a prey to many health hazards, they are often prone to. Thus the age of marriage may be increased if required but never brought down.
Dr
Visal A Khan: Marriage is a major event in the life
of girls in cultural context that define their primary role
as wives and mothers. Universality of marriages and early
marriages are the special features in the history of nuptiality
in India, woman's marriage with a special focus on examining
the role of cultural practices/norms and patterns of mate
selection on women's lower or higher marriage age. The factors
responsible for each of the events in the marriage process,
age at initiation of marriage and age at marriage, in addition
to their related aspects like desired traits of the prospective
mate and patterns of assortative mating has to be adequately
identified. Just as late marriages, which gave the detail
picture of the cultural norms, values and the role of relatives
in the marriage market.
In this context global scenario of marriage age in different countries like Algeria, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Libya, Morocco, Senegal, Somalia, South Africa, (16 to 18 years female, 20 to 22 years for male), Sudan, Tanzania (Puberty age 14 years for female, 18 years for male), similarly the marriage age in Americas, Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Mexico, Paraguay etc is kept 18 years for male and 16 years for female. Europe, Oceana too follow the same ranges. On the contrary Iran follows: 15 for males, 13 for females (girls under 13 and boys under 15 may get married with their guardian consent and court ruling that it is in their interest, rarely ever done at the age of 13/15, in some cases in late 20s) Iraq 18 for men and women; judicial permission may be granted at 15 years if fitness, physical capacity and guardian's consent (or unreasonable objection on part of guardian) are established. (May or may not have been revised after Saddam Hussein's fall.)
Looking towards higher population, India follows age range 21 for males, 18 for females, but to reduce this limit looking towards the aspects of life, education, health, resources development, population growth factors we have to review policies. The girl must have maturity, good education, proper health to sustain her medical fitness, capability to carry healthy future pregnancy and must understanding creativity as familiarity of future family responsibility before marriage. India's population is increasing at a very high rate, the girl must understand family planning methods of health before she is married. Similarly the boy should have good education, job, individual capacity of self building career before marriage. Movement to bring down age of marriage is not justified.
Shilpa
Gupta: I am not in favour of bringing down the age
of marriage. I don't see any logic in this recommendation.
By reducing the marriageable age of boys and girls, we are
reducing the potential for education and enlightenment and
career prospects. It will deprive the youth of good education
and career. Even psychologically also they'll start looking
at the prospect of their marriage and the romanticism attached
to this ritual. Early marriage will also cause social and
economic problems, the social problem is lack of maturity
and their inability to plan out their lives. This would
further degenerate their economic base. Early marriage may
result in large families and add to the economic burden
of the family and the nation.
Biologically also early marriage is not advisable because the generation out of such wedlock will not be strong enough and invariably retarded.
Krishna
Chander Mouli: Early marriages are a typical phenomenon
for our country. Despite Acts prohibiting early marriages
in place their enforcement has always been slack. By reducing
the marriageable age to l6 and l8 respectively in the case
of girls and boys is only perhaps an attempt to facilitate
and legalise early marriages widely rampant in our society
specially on Basant Panchami day and Aakha Teej (Akshay
Triteeya)
I do not see any reason for reducing the marriageable age. On the other hand there is every possibility of an adverse psychological impact of this reduction on the youth. Girls who never think of their marriage plans before l8 will now either be induced to marry early or they will start preparing themselves for a married life even at the cost of their studies and a suitable career. Usually girls complete their graduation at the age of 20 and if their marriage plans are initiated either by their family or themselves a couple of years before, they may not only be deprived of a degree but also be under a constant stress related to their marriage and career settlement plans.
In the case of boys too it is no different. The average age of graduation in their case too is 20 years. If they are induced to go in for a marriage they will also be failing in pursuing higher studies and a bright career.
It is a fact that reducing marriageable age need not mean compulsory marriage. But human nature as it is the relaxation induces parents to settle their children into married life before they are actually prepared both biologically and economically or matured enough to make a married life a bliss for them. A rethink therefore on the reduction of the marriageable age is advisable.
Adhinath
jha: In the present times the youth is mentally prepared
for marriage after 25 years as begins to engage himself
in occupation. Marriage is necessary for a safe and secure
life. Once marriage takes place, a number of problems crop
up. Early marriages do not help the youth much.
Marriages are best when proper age and jobs have been obtained.
Vikas
Dwivedi: Any decrease in the age for marriage is not
justified as it will give rise to new problems. As regards
population India is the second largest country in
the world and any move to reduce age of marriage will only abet population rise. Girls these days are educated and want to pursue higher studies. Any reduction in the age of marriage for girls will facilitate their early marriage and reduce their chances to pursue studies.
It would affect their health too.
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