Telangana state's marriage schemes work wonders

Hyderabad: CM K Chandrashekhar Rao‘s intention to help girls from poor families under Kalyana Lakshmi and Shaadi Mubarak schemes has had a positive fallout, with an upswing being witnessed in female student enrollment in higher school education and a downward trend in child marriages.

According to the National Family Health Survey (NFHS 2015-16) published in December last, percentage of female students aged 15-17 years has increased to 76 per cent in Telangana State. This is massive jump from the meagre 23 per cent registered during NFHS 2005-06 published in 2008. Percentage of boys attending school also increased from 46 per cent in 2005-06 to 81 per cent in 2015-16. Surprisingly, the national average of girl students aged 15-17 years attending school is only 60 per cent and 70 per cent in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh.

Officials also attribute the high percentage of girl education to Kalyana Lakshmi and Shaadi Mubarak schemes besides improving educational standards in government schools. So far, around 3.02 lakh girls availed the benefit and the State government has spent about Rs 1,807 crore since the launch of



the schemes. Within four years, the number of beneficiaries jumped from 13,727 in 2014-15 to a whopping 1,08,966 during the current fiscal and is expected to cross 1.1 lakh by the end of the current fiscal.

Telangana State Legislative Council K Swamy Goud feels that the increasing number of families attracted to Kalyana Lakshmi and Shaadi Mubarak schemes has played vital role in reducing child marriages in the State. “Both the schemes have been successful in helping poor families perform their daughter’s marriage to their satisfaction,” he observed.

“To avail benefits under Kalyana Lakshmi and Shaadi Mubarak schemes, the girls should be aged 18 years and above. Due to awareness programmes against child marriages by the State government as well as financial benefits of these schemes, we have witnessed drop in child marriages in the last four years,” Sharada, Child Protection and Development Officer at the office of Director of Women Development and Child Welfare department said . The authorities have recorded a reduction in registered cases of child marriages from 629 in 2014-15 to 316 in 2017-18.