Gender imbalance stalls panchayat match-making initiative

Payyavoor Grama Panchayat had on August 1 launched a noble initiative named Mangalyam scheme to assist men and women struggling to find marriage partners and offering a subsidised community-level wedding platform open to all castes and faiths.

- HD Bureau

The stated objective is to ease financial burdens and social pressures around marriage. But a gender mismatch in the number of applications is stalling the programme.

The scheme has received over 3,000 applications from men to participate in a mass wedding drive, while only about 150-200 women have registered-prompting officials to pause male enrolment until female participation improves.

By mid-September, panchayat authorities were compelled to close male registration temporarily, citing the stark mismatch in gender participation.