In the 15th Episode of Shastrartha, Pratyasha Rath, Padma Pillai and Kushal talk about the multiple perspectives around the legal age for marriage. A government-appointed panel is looking at the right marriageable age for women in India, and they will be making a decision on the subject soon. As of now the legal age of marriage according to the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act 2006 is 18 years for girls with no exceptions. For boys, the legal age of marriage is 21. With the government panel indicating that it intends to increase the age of marriage for girls we try to understand whether this decision is good or bad. As of now, the mean female marriage age in India is already above 21 years and about 35% are married before then.
Perspectives around legal age for marriage
