LUCKNOW, March 8 -- Sixteen-year-old Shivani, an aspiring police officer and a Class 11 student, was felicitated on International Women's Day for her courage in standing up against child marriage-not just for herself but for other young girls as well. Recognised by the Women and Child Development (WCD) Department, she was honoured for preventing her own marriage at 15 and for bringing similar cases to the authorities' attention.

Shivani witnessed her older sister being married off at 16 in 2022 when she was just 12. Soon after, her sister's health deteriorated, and she suffered two miscarriages before her third pregnancy. "She was always unwell. That's when I realised marriage was not what I wanted right now," Shivani recalled.

One of f...