Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma greeted the girls of India on the occasion of National Girl Child Day.

Taking to Twitter, he wrote, “Resourceful, diligent and resilient- girls are jewels of our society. Our Govt has undertaken many initiatives to encourage young girls to pursue their dreams. On #NationalGirlChildDay, I extend my warm greetings to every girl child & wish they excel in their chosen fields.”

It may be mentioned that National Girl Child Day is observed on January 24 every year in India to spread awareness about the inequalities faced by girls in the society as well as to promote awareness about the rights of girl child and the importance of female education, health and nutrition.

The objective behind the day is to provide support and opportunities to the girls of India.

Assam government, after noticing rise in child marriage cases across the state, undertook few initiatives to prevent the crime.

The following were the steps taken by the cabinet:

• To reduce Infant Mortality Rate & Maternal Mortality Rate and prevent child marriages in rural areas, all 2,197 Gram Panchayat Secretaries to be designated as 'Child Marriage Prevention (Prohibition) Officers' under The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006.

• These officers will lodge FIR under POCSO Act in cases where the age of the bride is under 14 years and under The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 in cases where the bride is between 14 years to 18 years.