In one of the more remarkable stories I've read recently, the Indian government is giving cash awards and certificates of appreciation to individuals who marry down in caste. And they're doing so in a society that's not terribly enlightened on the subject -- a survey last year found that 74% of Indians said inter-caste marriages were unacceptable. And it can get worse than that: "Inter-caste couples who defy their parents' wishes often are banished from their families. Hostile village elders find ways to invalidate such unions, sometimes by alleging that one of the partners was coerced and throwing the other in jail. Or the couple is hounded out of the community, their homes and property forfeit....In some cases, relatives have resorted to 'honor killings.'"
This would be akin to the US government swooping in during the 70s and offering checks for interracial marriages. It's impressively forward-thinking stuff. How much effect it'll actually have on the revailing culture remains to be seen. But the government's willingness to do it at all speaks volumes.
