More than a third of the world’s child brides are from India, leaving children at an increased risk of exploitation despite the Asian giant’s growing modernity and economic wealth, according to a UNICEF report.
Nearly 25 million women in India were married in the year 2007 by the age of 18, said the report released Tuesday, which noted that children in India, Nepal and Pakistan may be engaged or even married before they turned 10.
Millions of children are also being forced to work in harmful conditions, or face violence and abuse at home and outside, suffering physical and psychological harm with wide-reaching, and sometimes irreparable effects, the report said.
“A society cannot thrive if its youngest members are forced into early marriage, abused as sex workers or denied their basic rights,” said UNICEF Executive Director Ann Veneman.
Despite rising literacy levels and a ban on child marriage, tradition and religious practices are keeping the custom alive in India, as well as in Nepal and Pakistan, the report said.
