West Bengal has recorded the highest rate of child marriages in India, according to the latest report of the Sample Registration System (SRS) published this month. The report, compiled by the Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India, states that 6.3% of females in West Bengal got married before turning 18 years old.

The report highlights that:
“Among the bigger states/UTs, the highest proportion of females getting married before the age of 18 is observed in West Bengal (6.3%), followed by Jharkhand (4.6%); the lowest is observed in Kerala (0.1%), followed by Himachal Pradesh and Haryana, recorded at 0.4% and 0.6%, respectively.”

At the national level, the percentage of females marrying before 18 stands at 2.1%. In rural areas, West Bengal recorded 5.8%, followed by Jharkhand at 5.2%. In urban areas, West Bengal again topped the list with 7.6%, followed by Jammu & Kashmir (3.5%) and Odisha (2.8%).

The report also noted that West Bengal had the highest proportion of females marrying between 18 and 20 years at 44.9%, followed by Jharkhand (41.5%). Jammu & Kashmir was the lowest at 8.4%.

Interestingly, the SRS report published in May 2025 had also ranked West Bengal the highest at 6.5%, while India’s overall figure stood at 2.6%. The September 2025 data shows a slight decline, from 6.5% to 6.3% in West Bengal and from 2.6% to 2.1% at the national level.

What has puzzled policymakers is why child marriages continue to remain high in West Bengal despite multiple government schemes. The state launched the Kanyashree Scheme in 2013, a conditional cash transfer programme aimed at improving the status of girls and reducing child marriage.

During Kanyashree Dibas celebrations on August 14, 2025, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that the number of beneficiaries had crossed 93 lakh, and she expected it to soon cross 1 crore. With a population of 10 crore, this means almost 9.3% of the population is covered under the scheme.

In the 2025–26 budget, the government allocated ₹593.51 crore for Kanyashree and ₹11.8 lakh crore for gender-specific schemes, marking a 38% increase from the previous year.

Despite these steps, West Bengal still tops India in child marriages.

A 2024 study published in the Lancet also pointed out that Bihar, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, and Maharashtra together account for more than half of India’s child marriages. It observed that while some states have reduced child marriage significantly, “other states have struggled, such as West Bengal.”

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