‘Greater awareness needed to reduce teenage pregnancy rate’

Teenage pregnancy is a complicated social problem that can be addressed only through an integrated and non-judgemental approach from the authorities, families, and the educational system, Pudukkottai Vijaya, chairperson of the State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, said in Tiruchi on Thursday.

Addressing a stakeholders’ consultative meeting organised by the All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA) to address the rise in teenage pregnancies in Tiruchi district, Ms. Vijaya said: “There are over 500 revenue villages in the district, and in a recent survey, we noticed that the student dropout rates are high in blocks with a high teenage pregnancy rate. It is essential to bring back the children into the educational system in order to prevent the incidence of teenage pregnancy, child marriage, and child labour.”