Girls and Women Banned from Making Use of Mobile Devices in Bihar Village

PATNA, Bihar — Girls and unmarried women have been prevented from making use of mobile devices because that would increase extramarital relationships and forbidden marriages, according to a local council in Bihar. And married women can only use phones indoors and under the supervision of a relative. This was issued on Sunday in a village called Sunderbari in the district of Purnia, which has 8,000 people, in eastern Bihar. There is a fine of $180, or 10,000 rupees, for these unmarried women, and then 2,000 rupees for married women.

Women’s rights activists are screaming to be heard over this ban, which would prevent women from getting access to education, employment and also modernization, according to the vice president of the All India Democratic Women’s Association, Jagmati Sangwan. This has become a common rule by some self-appointed local councils, especially in Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. And it is in Haryana that the ban is most severe, unlike in the other village councils.

Panchayats have become so powerful that they can ban a lot of social activities like television and movies, including mobile devices, among young girls and unmarried women. The married women are not excluded from the rule, according to Ms. Sangwan.