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Bhagyshri, 16 (L), Mayari Pandhari Motiwad, 16 (C), and Aisha, 15 (R), at their school at Malhippangee, Maharashtra, India, on Nov. 27, 2020. Motiwad's parents were going to force her to marry during the COVID-19 lockdown, but the other two convinced her parents to let her continue her studies. Venus Upadhayaya/Epoch Times
LATUR, India—A direct effect of months of pandemic-related lockdown in rural parts of India has been a dramatic increase in child marriages, with some charities and government agencies reporting a threefold rise in one western state.
Meanwhile, groups of teen girls in this region are doing what they can to prevent the illegal marriages of their friends in the middle of the lockdown.
Venus Upadhayaya reports on India, China, and the Global South. Her traditional area of expertise is in Indian and South Asian geopolitics. Community media, sustainable development, and leadership remain her other areas of interest.
