India may raise the age of marriage for girls. Not everyone thinks that's a good idea
On a hot afternoon in August, 16-year-old Punam Mitharwal finished a routine college test and made her way to the nearest post office in her northern Indian town of Hisar to send a special bit of mail. It was a short letter written in Hindi on a postcard addressed to India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Half a dozen of her girlfriends accompanied her, each with a similar letter. They all contained a specific request — to raise the legal age of marriage for girls to 21.
In India, the legal age of marriage is currently 18 for girls and 21 for boys. Mitharwal says several of her friends were married off by their family as soon as they turned 18. "At that age, girls are not prepared for marriage,"
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