I never thought I’d see the day my daughter would convince me not to marry her off early,” said 40-year-old Laxmi Bhoye, an unlettered resident of Mokhada block. “Now, I tell other parents too — let the girls study first; marriage can wait.” Across the tribal hamlets of Palghar district, a quiet revolution is underway. Girls and boys, many barely in their teens, are standing up against child marriage — and winning the support of parents, elders, and local leaders.

For decades, early marriage and teenage pregnancies were accepted as inevitable. The results were devastating: premature deliveries, high maternal and infant mortality, and girls losing their education before it had truly begun. According to reports, in the past three years alone, 15,253 child marriages were recorded across Maharashtra’s tribal districts. In the same period, 15,253 girls under 18 became mothers, and 810 children died due to malnutrition in Palghar alone. Nearly half of all tribal mothers here were married before 18, while almost 47 per cent are illiterate.