46 couples apply for inter-caste marriage incentive
Tribune News Service
Karnal, July 6
The number of inter-caste marriages in Karnal district is on the rise. This is indicated by the data collected by the District Welfare Office (DWO), according to which 42 of the 46 couples, who had applied for the incentive under the ‘Mukhyamantri Samajik Samrasta Antarjatiya Vivah Shagun Yojana’ had received the benefit.
Surinder Kumar Fuliya, District Welfare Officer, said only four applications were pending due to budget crunch, while all other couples had been given the cash benefit. As per the data, 23 inter-caste marriages were registered in 2015, while 23 had been registered this year.
A youth belonging to scheduled caste, who married an upper-caste girl, said, “The scheme financially helped us after the marriage.”
An upper-caste girl, who married a youth from a lower-caste, said, “Caste was no boundary in our marriage. Mutual understanding is the key to our relation.”
The government had introduced the scheme to promote inter-caste marriages by contributing money in the joint account of the couple.
The District Welfare Officer said, “Earlier, Rs 50,000 was given to the beneficiary couple, but now the state government has doubled the amount to Rs 1.01 lakh of which Rs 51,000 is given at the time of application, while the remaining amount is given after one year of the marriage.”
The claimants could apply within a year of their marriage. No incentive would be given for second marriage, he said.
