Dhaka, Sept. 17 -- Months later, the school was closed with all other institutions in Bangladesh after the country had detected its first COVID-19 cases.

Nargis returned to in-person schooling after one and a half years of the nationwide shutdown and discovered to her surprise that all her female classmates have been married off.

"Now I am the only girl left in the class. I can't share anything with anyone," said a distraught Nargis, after attending the class with the boys on Thursday.

The pandemic affected the finances of many families in Bangladesh, where some consider girls as a burden even in normal times, leading to a spike in child marriages.

Nargis also fears about her future. "I don't know what's waiting for me in the end. I'v...