For decades, inter-caste and inter-religion marriage have been looked down upon by a large number of families in India. It has not just been unaccepted but the couples who engage in these marriages face a lot of troubles including extreme scenarios like honour killings.
The Department of Social Justice in Kerala will begin to build secure accommodations and ‘safe homes’ for people who are tied up in marriages outside their religion and castes.
According to New Indian Express, the decision to start this initiative came after a 23-year old Dalit Christian man was abducted and killed allegedly by the relatives of his upper-caste wife in Kottayam district of Kerala in 2018.
The Department will accommodate these couples for one year after marriage in the safe homes. People in general category who earn less than Rs 1 lakh annually will be given an assistance of Rs 30,000.
However, the couples who are from the scheduled caste category will be provided with an assistance of Rs 75,000.
These inter-caste couples will also be provided with a special consideration during the time of transfer in government departments.
Hope that other states too follow Kerala’s exemplary example.
