Surkhet, Feb. 7 -- year-old girl from ward 9 of Birendranagar Municipality married a man from Kalikot district in November 2022. They knew each other, had a brief relationship, and tied the knot with their parents' consent. But their marriage barely lasted two years.

"I got pregnant soon after the wedding, and that's when physical and mental abuse began. I endured the tortures for the sake of social prestige, but when it became unbearable, I had no choice but to call it quits," said the woman, who is now 21, and divorced. "The society blamed me saying that my husband left her. But the truth is, early marriage ruined my life," said the young mother of a son.

An 18-year-old girl from ward 12 of Gurbhakot Municipality, married a local man ...