The effects of the Dowry system in India.
Slide 1
The Effects of the Dowry
System in India
What is meaning of dowry
“Dowry” in the sense of the expression
contemplated through the Dowry Prohibition Act
is a demand for property of valuable security
having an inextricable nexus with the marriage,
i.e., it is a consideration from the side of the
bride’s parents or relatives to the groom or his
parents and/or guardian for the agreement to
marry the bridetobe.
Causes of Dowry System
1. GreedExpectation: When the marriage
ceremony talks are initiated, a major sector of
the society holds the thought that it is the event
for extortion from the bride’s family. Several
reasons are cited including the dowry is being
demanded to compensate the costs of the
groom’s education and liability. The primary
reason behind such desperate measures can be
justified through the greed factor.,
2. Religious Dictates
Religious do not condone interreligious marriages
or even between different religious sects and a
suitable groom has to be found from the same
religious backgrounds. These restrictions limit the
number of suitable matches. Boys of marriageable
age with desirable qualifications become a prize
and this in turn encourages the practice of the catch
being caught by the highest bidder.
3. Social Status
The ancient India was quite liberal in the event
of gift exchange during marriage. However, at
present, the dowry amount and inkind gift
exchange has led to depletion in status of
women in the society, and led to depiction of
social stance through the networth exchanged.
Yet again, the bride’s family try to pay it out
owing to the fact that losing a marriage proposal
would deteriorate their status in the society.
4. Status of Women
It is quite obvious that women’s status in the
society is not an equal one. The plight doesn’t
end here. Rather, the society owes its
infrastructure buildup to the effective
contribution of both genders alike. However, it
is significantly ignored and the ultimate
sufferers are the women in such setup. The
dowry system is the brainchild of such mindset
and is the primary reason behind the plight of
women in the nation.
5. Illiteracy
With a literacy rate of 74.04% in the country, it
is quite valid to consider it the primary cause for
different social evils. Being from the segment
that is not knowledgeable about the laws and
legislation, they face several atrocities owing to
dowry exchange practices. They are left with
little or no choices and have to meet the
demands of the groom’s family, which when not
met, leads to exploitation of the women.
Effect Of Dowry System
1. Injustice towards girls
Dowry bears a huge financial obligation for the
bride’s family. A girl child is viewed a possible
source of drain on the family’s finances,
ultimately an onus. Girls are often marginalized
in the areas of education where boys of the
family are given preference. They are thrust
towards domestic chores from a very early age.
A host of restrictions are imposed on them in the
name of family honor and they are made to stay
indoors.
2. Economic burden
Getting a girl married is associated with a hefty
amount of money by Indian parents due to
direct or subtle demands for dowry by the
groom’s family. Families often borrow heavily,
mortgage properties leading to major decline in
economic health.
3. Gender inequality
The idea of paying dowry in order to get a girl
married generates an increased sense of
inequality among the genders, placing men
superior to women. Young girls are kept from
schools while their brothers are given access to
education. They are regarded incompetent for
roles other than housework and are often
discouraged from taking up jobs. Their opinions
are suppressed, not valued or ignored more
often than not. Physical and behavioral
restrictions are imposed on girls that are
completely natural for boys.
4. Violence against women
Contrary to hopeful parents, dowry is often not
a onetime pay up. Demands are continuously
made by the husband’s family who consider the
girl’s family as a never ending source of finance.
Inability by the girl’s family often leads to verbal
abuse, domestic violence and even deaths.
Brides being burned by the inlaws are hardly a
novelty in this country. Continuous physical and
mental torture instigates women to go into
depression and commit suicide. 2016 figures
indicate that in India, 20 women die every day
due to dowry related issues.
5. Deteriorating financial status of bride’s
family
Dowry doesn’t affect the bride alone. Rather, its
ordeal extends to bride’s parents and they have
to bear the financial demands of their
counterparts to ensure wellbeing of their child.
With regular demands from the groom’s family,
reports of suicides are yet again common in the
country. Needless to say, this social evil should
necessarily be eradicated for the society and the
nation.
How we can solve this problems
1. Education: Education is the primary catalyst
of growth in any nation. If we have to reach out
across the nation and make sure the mainstream
community is at par with the nation’s prospects,
education is a necessity. Lack of education leads
to irresponsible decisions leading to financial
exploitation from a marriage relation. Dowry
system is a social evil and owes its origination to
ignorance and illiteracy. Eradicating this evil is
not possible without educating the society.
2. Making women selfdependent
The female sect of our society is an active
contributor in the development of the home, the
society and the nation as a whole. It hampers their
development and thought process. Hence, ensuring
employment opportunities for the female sect and
making education feasible seems the first step to
ensure annihilation of dowry system from the
society. In the long run, legislations will turn out to
be effective, if crimes are reported, and a well
educated society inclusive of selfdependent women
will ensure robust reporting of dowry related crimes.
3. Gender Equality
To ensure removal of dowry system from the nerves
of our system, gender equality is the third step.
Educating children about the drawbacks of dowry
system, and making sure that they inculcate the
spirit to boycott it, is the longterm solution to the
issue. To eradicate this evil, we need to learn and
educate others about the illeffects of it and it can be
achieved by providing equal rights to both genders.
Well, granting equal employment opportunities
won’t be enough.
4. Government Initiatives
Government is the body which holds the key to
development of a nation. It is the formulator of
laws and executes them to make sure people
follow them for the betterment of the society.
Dowry system has been a part of the society
since time eternal. The government has made
legislation to limit the dowry exchange.
THANKS
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