we are promoting inter-caste/ inter-faith marriages in the country by positng number of articles on the subject.

The Maharashtra govt has taken giant step in this endeavour by offering monetary help of rs 50 thousand to such couples.
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please read story published in The Times of India , March 11, 2010

State will offer Rs 50K to inter-caste couples

Clara Lewis I TNN

Mumbai: In a move to promote inter-caste marriages,the state government has increased from Rs 15,000 to Rs 50,000 the one-time largesse to be paid to such couples.
The objective of the monetary incentive is to promote marriages between people from the upper caste and the lower castes (Scheduled Caste,Scheduled Tribes and nomadic tribes).Often,such marriages happen in the face of opposition from parents of both sides.So the couple largely has no financial support when they get married.This is to help them get started in their wedded life, said an official.
The state is merely following the example set up by states such as Uttar Pradesh,Haryana,Gujarat,Orissa,Madhya Pradesh and Punjab,to name a few.
A part of the money is put in a fixed deposit in the name of the couple.The couple is given a small amount for immediate expenses,besides additional funds to purchase household items.The incentive is disbursed by the government a few days before International Womens Day and a second time in October.The reason being the onus of making a marriage work rests on the woman and this is one way of acknowledging the contribution of women to eradicate the caste system.
A Ramaiah,chairperson of the Centre for Study of Social Exclusive and Inclusive Policies at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences,said intercaste marriages were more an urban phenomenon than a rural one.Awareness in urban areas is certainly more than in rural areas where an inter-caste marriage is considered going against God.Hence there are more instances of killings in rural areas than in towns or cities. The increased amount,said Ramaiah,would certainly help such couples and prompt those who have been contemplating an inter-caste marriage to go ahead with their decision.Yashwant Mankhedkar,a government official who married an Iyengar girl 18 years ago,however,said the monetary incentive was mere tokenism.The government should carry out awareness campaigns in colleges so that more young people opt for inter-caste marriages, he said,adding that there should be an action plan to help sustain such marriages.His wife,Meera,concurred.The Indian society is very caste conscious and the government needs to initiate measures so that an internal process of change happens, she said.Anand Teltumbe,a wellknown writer and Dalit rights activist,said the scheme was a gimmick being played out on Dalits.The government should work on stopping the atrocities on Dalits, he said.