one woman’s quest to end india’s big fat weddings
Last Updated : GMT 09:03:51
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today
Last Updated : GMT 09:03:51
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today

One woman’s quest to end India’s big fat weddings

Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today

Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today One woman’s quest to end India’s big fat weddings

Indian mining tycoon Gali Janardhan Reddy,
New Delhi - ArabToday

When Indian lawmaker Ranjeet Ranjan attended a relative’s Punjabi wedding with her son three years ago, they were both struck by the opulence and extravagance of the affair.
Her son Sarthak, then 17, turned to her and said: "Mama, please don’t spend in this insane way when I get married, OK?"
Just last year, one of the employees in Mrs Ranjan’s constituency of Supaul in Bihar told her that he was going to have to spend 500,000 rupees (Dh27,500) to get his daughter married. His salary was a mere 10,000 rupees a month.
The two incidents set Mrs Ranjan thinking. The result was a private member’s bill which she plans to introduce in the next session of the lower parliament on March 9, limiting wedding expenses for all Indians to 500,000 rupees and limiting the number of guests.
If a family spends above this amount, it will have to donate 10 per cent of the surplus to a special fund which will go towards the marriage of girls from poor families.
"The root cause of most of our social evils is parents having to spend vast amounts of money on weddings and the dowry. We need to stop it urgently because the middle class, lower middle class and poor families – 90 per cent of our population – are suffering," Mrs Ranjan told The National.
"Weddings are meant to be celebrations, not obscene spectacles. For miles and miles, you have tables loaded with Thai, Chinese, Continental, Italian, Vietnamese and Indian food. People are so full after the starters that most of them leave. Think of all the food that’s wasted," she said.
There is no denying that weddings have become extreme displays of wealth in India. Weddings are almost entirely the responsibility of the bride’s family and are used to display the family’s wealth and status. Families can spend decades paying off debts from weddings.
Even in rural India, poor families sell precious land or end up in debt for the rest of their lives in order to throw an elaborate wedding party for their daughter.
"It’s OK for the three per cent of Indians who want to burn their money on obnoxiously vulgar weddings but we need to think about the vast majority of Indians who are oppressed by this custom," said Ranjana Kumari, head of the Centre for Social Research in New Delhi.
Weddings, and the accompanying dowry, are also why boys outnumber girls in India. Afraid of the money they will have to spend on their daughter’s wedding, many couples opt to abort a female foetus.
The practice of female foeticide has resulted in a skewed gender ratio of only 918 girls born to every 1,000 boys, according to government statistics for 2011.
India’s rich and the political class have set the standards of extravagance.
When mining baron and former minister Gali Janardhan Reddy’s daughter got married in December, he paid for an ancient kingdom to be replicated in the grounds of a palace in the south Indian state of Karnataka.
Bollywood stars performed for the 50,000 guests during the three-day celebration, while 3,000 security guards were deployed to ensure their safety.
The wedding cost five billion rupees with the bridal jewellery alone costing 900 million rupees.
In 2004, the northern state of Jammu & Kashmir was alarmed at how the rice and mutton used in wedding feasts – at least 30 dishes is a sine qua non of a Kashmiri wedding banquet – had caused food shortages.
The state government invoked a rule that same year to limit the bride and groom to 50 guests each, and laid down how many kilos of rice and meat could be used.
That rule was only temporary, however, and never became a law, which is what Mrs Ranjan is seeking with her Marriages (Compulsory Registration and Prevention of Wasteful Expenditure) Bill.
On Tuesday, the government in Jammu & Kashmir issued a fresh temporary rule to curb lavish weddings. This time though, it stipulated that the number of guests had to be limited to 500 on the bride’s side and 400 on the groom’s, while only seven main dishes and two desserts could be served.
"Young Indians support me. They tell me we have to change our mentality. Someone has to start but no one wants to make the first move," said Mrs Ranjan.
Several editorials in the Indian media have pointed out that, if passed, the bill will destroy the wedding industry – worth about US$40 to $50 billion (Dh146.9bn – Dh183.6bn) and growing at about 25 to 30 per cent annually.
Critics say enforcing the 500,000 rupees ceiling will not only bring more government interference into private matters but will also be difficult to enforce.
Mrs Ranjan disagrees, pointing to how child marriages – once equally entrenched in Indian society – were eventually banned and hardly occur now.
"Once my bill becomes the law, I will be giving a powerful weapon to families," she said.

Source: The National

almaghribtoday
almaghribtoday

Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

one woman’s quest to end india’s big fat weddings one woman’s quest to end india’s big fat weddings

 



Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

one woman’s quest to end india’s big fat weddings one woman’s quest to end india’s big fat weddings

 



Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today Skincare PR Performance Full Year 2017

GMT 09:22 2018 Monday ,22 January

Skincare PR Performance Full Year 2017
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today New hunt for flight MH370 gets under way

GMT 11:03 2018 Wednesday ,24 January

New hunt for flight MH370 gets under way
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today Modern colorful bedroom renovation

GMT 10:57 2017 Thursday ,21 December

Modern colorful bedroom renovation
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today Puigdemont candidate for Catalan president

GMT 13:56 2018 Tuesday ,23 January

Puigdemont candidate for Catalan president
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today Turkey detains dozens more

GMT 10:47 2018 Wednesday ,24 January

Turkey detains dozens more
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today The Rake announces editorial updates

GMT 10:46 2018 Tuesday ,16 January

The Rake announces editorial updates
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today Europe brings on charm and blue skies

GMT 11:51 2018 Tuesday ,23 January

Europe brings on charm and blue skies
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today For the Variety of Interior Design Styles

GMT 10:46 2017 Tuesday ,19 December

For the Variety of Interior Design Styles
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today US Christian tourists see deep meaning

GMT 13:44 2018 Monday ,22 January

US Christian tourists see deep meaning
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today Amazon to open first cashierless shop

GMT 10:03 2018 Tuesday ,23 January

Amazon to open first cashierless shop

GMT 16:05 2015 Thursday ,26 February

Egypt, South Sudan to launch campaign to fund Waw Dam

GMT 15:01 2017 Monday ,13 November

Switzerland edge out Northern Ireland

GMT 23:12 2015 Monday ,07 September

Moussa participates in annual forum at Salzburg

GMT 04:45 2012 Friday ,12 October

Hezbollah role in Syria grows more evident

GMT 01:42 2014 Sunday ,16 February

Posting links to freely available to legal Web

GMT 08:56 2016 Wednesday ,05 October

Rough times for Saudi retail

GMT 06:59 2017 Wednesday ,01 February

Bayern Munich's Ribery out of action

GMT 19:36 2011 Monday ,25 April

KSE index ends day in green

GMT 00:40 2012 Sunday ,08 July

An Alaska women’s shelter can reopen

GMT 17:43 2012 Thursday ,29 November

Scolari returns as Brazil coach

GMT 08:48 2017 Wednesday ,14 June

Qatar keep FIFA World Cup hopes alive

GMT 11:45 2012 Tuesday ,11 December

Hawa al-Tagtaga remembered

GMT 12:06 2011 Saturday ,11 June

William in first Trooping parade

GMT 15:49 2012 Wednesday ,15 August

Lindsay Lohan in skimpy bikini

GMT 15:15 2016 Wednesday ,24 August

Deal puts Microsoft apps on Lenovo phones

GMT 14:52 2011 Friday ,08 July

Energy cuts will avoid wastage

GMT 12:25 2014 Wednesday ,03 December

The New York hotel that will host the royal couple

GMT 12:24 2012 Sunday ,01 July

Salvatore Ferragamo: Eyewear collection
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today
 
 Almaghrib Today Facebook,almaghrib today facebook  Almaghrib Today Twitter,almaghrib today twitter Almaghrib Today Rss,almaghrib today rss  Almaghrib Today Youtube,almaghrib today youtube  Almaghrib Today Youtube,almaghrib today youtube

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

.almaghribtoday .almaghribtoday .almaghribtoday .almaghribtoday
almaghribtoday almaghribtoday almaghribtoday
almaghribtoday
بناية النخيل - رأس النبع _ خلف السفارة الفرنسية _بيروت - لبنان
almaghribtoday, Almaghribtoday, Almaghribtoday