The Telangana Women and Child Welfare Department has taken a major step to prevent child marriages and minor pregnancies across the state by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Taruni, a voluntary organization working for the past two decades in the areas of girls’ empowerment, prevention of child marriages, and anti-human trafficking.
The MoU was signed at the Secretariat in the presence of Minister Seethakka. Women & Child Welfare Secretary Anita Ramachandran, Director Shruti Ojha, and Taruni founders Mamata Raghuveer and Raghuveer participated in the program.
Speaking on the occasion, Minister Seethakka said child marriage is not just a family issue but a serious social problem that affects the future of girls. She highlighted that child marriages lead to disruption of education, health challenges, and loss of economic independence.
She stated that the government is conducting statewide awareness campaigns with the slogan “Child Marriage – A Halt to Life” and emphasized expanding the campaign through social media platforms.Through this partnership, special training will be provided to Anganwadi staff, supervisors, CDPOs, and field-level officials. Awareness programs will be conducted from village level to state level to educate girls about their rights, health, education, and safety.
The Minister stressed that the government is committed to girls’ education, health, and empowerment, and called for collective efforts by the government, NGOs, and society to completely eliminate child marriages.
Taruni founder Mamata Raghuveer said the organization will work with the state government by providing technical support, awareness programs, and training to reduce child marriages and minor pregnancies.
