RAWALPINDI, Feb 3: The district government is planning to organize a mass marriage ceremony next month to facilitate deserving persons in meeting the wedding expenses.

Rawalpindi District Nazim Raja Tariq Kiani told this reporter on Thursday that this would be third the mass marriage in the district after the practice was introduced in the province last year by Punjab Governor Lt-Gen (retired) Khalid Maqbool.

He said the objective behind the plan was to help the poor people by reaching out to them. Fifty couples, including five from minorities, would tie the knot at next month's collective marriage. So far 150 couples of the district have been wed in similar ceremonies last year.

The list of intending couples would be compiled by a six- member body, which would also recommend names of 80 couples. The final selection would be made through balloting to be done by the district nazim.

Eligibility for being one of the couples to be married at the upcoming mass marriage is that the girl should be an orphan of not less than 18 years of age. Preference would be given to girls coming from families having more than one daughter, disabled girls, and daughters of low-paid government employees.

Credentials of the couples will be independently verified to ensure that only the deserving cases benefit from this programme. The brides would be given dowry worth Rs60,000 each by the district government.

This amount would be given out of donations received from philanthropists. A committee had already been formed in this regard. Besides, the couples and their families would be provided transport facility on the marriage day by NGOs and philanthropists.