Marriage arrangements and fertility preferences in India

What is it about?

With the onset of modernisation in India, changes in societal institutions are very prominent. Marriage has always been a vital event because it marks the journey of a couple where they live together, build their family and so on. Earlier, most of the marriages were arranged by the families and the couples in most of the occasions met each other in the ceremony itself. Having known nothing about each other, it, of course, becomes difficult to carry on the family process post marriage. But, as we changes are inevitable. Nowadays, couples have the freedom to choose their own life partners. Thus article aimed at examining whether pre-marital communications and marriage arrangements between couples indeed have a role to play post marriage. If couples have the freedom to choose one another, they as well have the privilege to communicate with each other regarding their likings and dislikings. This should help them to decide on their fertility preferences as well which in the long run could curb unwanted pregnancies.

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Why is it important?

This paper looks for an answer to a very basic question that arises in the day to day life. If we know our life partners for quite some time before marriage, if we know about their choices, would it actually ease out the married life? If so, will these basic communications help to take decisions on sensitive yet very important issues such as using of contraception, desired family size etc. If pre marital communications indeed help the couples to smoothen their lives post marriage in terms of fertility preferences, living arrangements, then many unwanted births could be avoided, the contraception use could be regulated.