Thanks to marriage assistance schemes, now more women become graduates

Trichy: Signifying the success of marriage assistance schemes, brides with degree qualifications outnumbered the brides with no degrees in availing the schemes in Trichy in 2017-18.

Going by the data released by the Trichy district administration, a total of 2,230 college graduate brides got 8 grams of gold coin and Rs 50,000 each under the Moovalur Ramamirtham Ammaiyar Ninaivu Marriage Assistance Scheme last year. Whereas 1,930 girls with Class X qualifications received the assistance of Rs 25,000 and the same weight of gold. The total value of the financial assistance and the gold coins issued last year was Rs 15.97 crore.

“This scheme, besides providing financial assistance and gold, ensures higher education to girls in rural areas. The incidences of girls dropping out are also coming down,” said district collector K Rajamani in his statement on Tuesday. He also claimed that the marriage at a young age due to poverty was also being brought down.

Stating that the scheme helps girls in not worrying about their economic status, district social welfare officer (DSWO) S Usha said, “They will get exposure to education in addition also learn about how to protect themselves from sexual abuses.”

Since then the scheme was launched in May 2011 by former chief minister J Jayalalithaa, the scheme has covered 18,914 non-graduates and 12,925 graduates till 2016-17 for which the government has disbursed Rs 146.45 crore worth financial assistance including the gold, under all the five schemes.

Besides Moovalur Ramamirtham Ammaiyar Ninaivu Marriage Assistance Scheme, the state government has also provided assistance through Dr Dharmambal Ammaiyar Ninaivu Widow Remarriage Assistance Scheme, EVR Maniammaiyar Ninaivu Marriage Assistance Scheme for Daughters of Poor Widows, Annai Therasa Ninaivu Marriage Assistance Scheme for Orphan Girls and Dr Muthulakshmi Reddy Ninaivu Inter-caste Marriage Assistance Scheme.