64 daughters married in mass wedding ceremony organized at Sarsa
AHMEDABAD: Sixty-four daughters from
different communities of north Gujarat were married off in a mass wedding
organized at Sarsa village near Anand to mark the birthday of Swami
Avichaldasji Maharaj on Wednesday. The wedding was sponsored by Dashrath
Patel, a billionaire businessman from US, whose daughter Ranu is turning 16
soon.
"Sixteenth birthday is a landmark in a child's life in the US where every parent throws a lavish party to celebrate his daughter turning sweet sixteen. I and my wife Chaya were keen that we share this happiness with daughters back home as well," said Dashrath Patel who spent over Rs 25 lakh for the mass wedding where 64 girls got married.
Each daughter was given five pairs of sarees and a kit of utensils and other items of daily use to help her start the family life. The function was presided over by Swami Avichaldasji Maharaj.
For the past 10 years, Avichaldasji has been organizing mass weddings on his birthday to enable poor parents marry off their daughters without borrowing money from loan sharks. "We realized that most parents, especially poor people, resent having daughters as they see them as a financial burden. We decided to give a helping hand to the parents to get their girls married so that the girl child is not resented but loved", said Avichaldasji.
The swami said that he believes that the religious and spiritual leaders can contribute majorly to the cause of saving the girl child. However, there is need for more people like Dashrath Patel to come forward and donate for social causes.
"While there are lakhs of people who donate for religious reasons, people should also come forward to share the financial burdens of the needy especially during social occasions like weddings. This would go a long way in making people respect and welcome girl child in the family", the swami said.
"Sixteenth birthday is a landmark in a child's life in the US where every parent throws a lavish party to celebrate his daughter turning sweet sixteen. I and my wife Chaya were keen that we share this happiness with daughters back home as well," said Dashrath Patel who spent over Rs 25 lakh for the mass wedding where 64 girls got married.
Each daughter was given five pairs of sarees and a kit of utensils and other items of daily use to help her start the family life. The function was presided over by Swami Avichaldasji Maharaj.
For the past 10 years, Avichaldasji has been organizing mass weddings on his birthday to enable poor parents marry off their daughters without borrowing money from loan sharks. "We realized that most parents, especially poor people, resent having daughters as they see them as a financial burden. We decided to give a helping hand to the parents to get their girls married so that the girl child is not resented but loved", said Avichaldasji.
The swami said that he believes that the religious and spiritual leaders can contribute majorly to the cause of saving the girl child. However, there is need for more people like Dashrath Patel to come forward and donate for social causes.
"While there are lakhs of people who donate for religious reasons, people should also come forward to share the financial burdens of the needy especially during social occasions like weddings. This would go a long way in making people respect and welcome girl child in the family", the swami said.
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