11 couples tie the knot at South Kolkata's first mass wedding on Saraswati Puja day

Kolkata: In today's world, saying 'I do' or having a big, fat Indian wedding, can cost the parents their entire life savings.

To help couples, who cannot afford wedding ceremonies, the 74th ward of Trinamool Congress organised a first-of-its-kind mass wedding on Saturday on Alipore road.

The event which began with an annual blood donation camp in the morning, was followed by the mass wedding which had eleven couples

tying the knot on the same platform.

Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, TMC leader Madan Mitra said: "There have been mass weddings before, but this is the first time that such a wedding has been organised on the occasion of Saraswati puja, which is also considered the Valentines' day for Bengalis".

Bengal Trinamool Congress President Subrata Bakshi, mayor Firhad Hakim, minister Sovandeb Chatterjee, Kolkata Municpal Corporation chairperson Mala Roy attended the event.

The couples, who had applied to take part in the programme, hailed from various places in Bengal such as Bantala, Howrah, Midnapore and Bardhaman.

President of ward 74 Biplab Mitra, who took the initiative of arranging the event, said: "Many couples had applied to take part in this programme but due to shortage of funds, we had to select eleven of them. Every party member of this ward has contributed a handsome sum of money and eventually, we successfully managed to buy gifts worth Rs 2 lakh for each couple including furniture, jewellery, clothes, and household goods and various other things. We have also arranged a buffet for the couples as well as for their kin and families."

Jhuma Naru, a mother of a bride who had come to Belaghata to attend the ceremony, said: "I wanted my daughter to get married to the man she loves but since we are not financially stable, we couldn't afford a decent wedding ceremony which generally costs nothing less than a lakh."

One has to spend around 6 to 10 lakhs for a simple wedding ceremony. Naru further said: "I am glad that my daughter is getting married in such a grand way."