50 couples get a fresh start

Local philanthropists arrange mass wedding ceremony and provide dowries.

DERA GHAZI KHAN: On Sunday, 50 couples tied the knot in a mass wedding ceremony arranged for flood victims. The ceremony took place in the Government High School for boys in Fazilpur and was organized by a large number of philanthropists.

“Over 3,000 people attended the ceremony and we are glad to have been able to help so many couples,” said one of the organisers of the event Hassan Shah. “We’ve been preparing for the event for nearly three months and lots of people have donated to the cause,” he said, adding “many contributed to gathering a trousseau for all the women and some brought in furniture for their homes.” Shah said that no NGO was involved in the ceremony and that a large number of philanthropists had sought the assistance of the tehsil municipal administration (TMA) and district government for a venue to arrange the event.

“The floods wiped away everything these people had. Their homes and their belongings and we are trying to help by giving them a fresh start after their weddings,” said a contributor Bisma Haider. “I personally met with most of the couples who are getting married and they have suffered immensely during the floods. This is the least we can do to help,” she said.

The brides and grooms were also given personal gifts including a Quran, dresses and watches. The brides were given an additional Rs100,000 for their individual dowry. “We never thought we could afford to marry off our daughters after the flood. Everything we had collected to give them was wiped away but the burden was lifted off our shoulders,” said bride Komal’s mother Sherbano. “We never thought we could afford for our daughter to be married in such a beautiful ceremony,” she added.

The relatives of all the brides and grooms were served with a meal and drinks. Speaking to The Express Tribune the brides and grooms said that they were extremely grateful to all the people who had contributed to the mass ceremony. “I wish I could personally thank everyone involved because they have helped us begin a new life,” said Raza. “When the floods came I lost everything and I never thought I would be able to rebuild it all but now I have help and enough to start a life,” he said.

Parents of the couple said that they had nothing to give their children for a dowry. “We were left with nothing, our houses and everything was swept away but this has put an end to our worries. I am not worried about my own future now that my children are married and can settle down,” said Ashfaq Raja.

This is the first time a mass wedding ceremony has catered to rural areas in Rajanpur and Dera Ghazi Khan. Flood victims from Dera Ghazi Khan, Rahim Yar Khan and Rajanpur were wed during the ceremony.

Most of the philanthropists involved in arranging the ceremony refused to cite their names and said that they wished to remain anonymous. The organisers of the event said that they were also working to construct a colony of small houses for the couples.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 24^th, 2011.