| Early Marriages Ratanamma, from Baidanmaka village, was married off at the age of just 12 years old and packed off to her husband's house. After marriage, when Ratanamma went to her husband's home, she knew little about housework or fieldwork. For this reason, she received severe criticism in her in-laws house. By the time she learnt about housework, she became pregnant and returned to her mother's house to give birth to her child. How a child is delivered, she has no clue. After all, she herself is a child. Her mother explains: "Ratanamma became mature when she was attending school. Because of this problem we married her... At that time a good match came and we married her. Every day while praying, Ratanamma asks the same question: Why did you marry me at such an early age, why have you filled my life with so many troubles?" Ratanamma's story is not a unique one in the state of Karnataka. Girls are married at an early age in this region. In earlier times, marriages of children were fixed the moment they were born. These days, most girls are married between the age of 10-12 years. But do these children understand the meaning of marriage? Are they mentally and physically developed to handle the pressures of marriage? There are no easy solutions to the problem of early marriages. Its causes are myriad and entrenched. However, steps can be taken to challenge this mindset, however small and tentative. Children With Children hopes to be one of the steps in the right direction. Find out more about the issue of Child Marriages: The UN Children's Fund demands an end to child marriages The wedding festival of Akhai Teej |