New Delhi: According to Census 2011 data, 41.3 per cent of all girls aged 19 in India have married.
And out of over 10 million girls of this age during the census, over 4.1 million were married or already divorced, separated or widowed, a report in The Times of India stated.
Data reveals that a majority of 19-year-old girls who had already been married, belonged to states such as — Bihar, West Bengal, Rajasthan and Jharkhand.
Nagaland, Jammu and Kashmir, Goa and Manipur were the states with lowest number of 19 year old married girls.
The highest percentage of teenage brides were in Bihar with 59.9 per cent followed with West Bengal (55.8 per cent) Rajasthan (55.0 per cent), Jharkhand (54.2 per cent) and Tripura (49.6 per cent).
Nagaland (15.9 per cent), J&K (17.3 per cent), Goa (19.1) and Manipur (19.1 per cent) were states with lowest percentage of teenage brides.
However, the data confirms that the marriage among teenagers is now less. The 2001 census confirmed that about 25 per cent of girls aged 15 to 19 were married. Ten years on, that proportion has shrunk to 20 per cent. In the age group of 20-24, 77 per cent and 70 per cent were married in 2001 and 2011 respectively.
The data also shows a clear rural-urban divide. In rural India, 47.3 per cent of 19-year — old girls had been married, in the urban areas the corresponding figure was 29.2 per cent. In most states, a majority of girls seem to be married by the time they are 20 years old.
