Assam announces month-long child marriage crackdown from November 1

Assam's chief minister, Himanta Biswa Sarma, has announced a big plan to stop child marriage.

Child marriage is when children are married before they are old enough to make that choice.

He told the police to run a special one-month drive starting November 1.

He said that so far more than 12,000 cases have been found and more than 11,000 people have been arrested.

He first promised to stop child marriage back in 2021.

Sarma says the crackdown has also helped more girls go to higher education.

He made a new rule for government workers: if a worker leaves his wife without a legal divorce, 20% of the worker's salary will be given to the wife instead.

The government also plans to apply this rule to private company workers.

In his Independence Day speech, he also announced a new department to help young people.

Some people think this is a way to connect with young people after the Jantar Mantar protests.