Pre-Marital Guidance and Counseling at Thiruvananthapuram

The state committee of Vanitha Vibhagam, Kerala Brahmana Sabha conducted a one-day orientation in pre-marital guidance and counseling for the office bearers of all District Vanitha Vibhagam and Yuvajana Vibhagam on 14 November 2010 at the Thaliyal B. S. Mandiram at Thiruvananthapuram. Representatives from five districts and people from the hosting district participated in this programme. Dr. Amar S. Fettle and Dr. Koshi Philip handled the sessions.

Dr. Amar S. Fettle is a pediatrician at the General Hospital, Thiruvananthapuram who is also the Nodal Officer for H1N1, Govt. of Kerala. He led the morning session on ‘Sex and Sexuality in marriage’. He stressed the importance of guiding children through various phases of life with openness. According to him, there is nothing to be ashamed of in seeking pre-marital guidance since it is only a coaching for marriage. Dr Fettle’s session covered topics like hygiene, puberty, healthy habits, gender differences and reproductive health.

The afternoon session was more on pre-marital guidance and counseling. Dr. Koshi Philip from Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram opined that the counseling should start quite early in life, which he divided it into 3 stages. Stage 1: During the school – for girls aged 13 and above and for boys, 15 and above. Stage 2: Counseling before marriage which covers topics like personality development, tips for choosing the right partner, maturity for a family life (physical, mental and emotional) and the importance of family budget. Stage 3: Post-marital counseling: to be done by a professional or a well-wisher, occasionally for checking whether things are well and to iron out differences, if any, before they get out of control. His suggestion that the couple should be made to sign a 10-point agreement at the time of marriage was at once amusing and thought-provoking. Both Dr Fettle and Dr Philip reiterated the importance of including the parents also in such programmes.

The State Vanitha Vibhagam also honoured three women achievers, Parassala B. Ponnammal, N. J. Nandini and Udyalakshmi on the day. The meeting was chaired by Dr. Latha Ramakrishnan, State President, Vanitha Vibhagam. Parassala B. Ponnammal and N. J. Nandini were honoured for their achievements in the field of music and Udayalakshmi who is also the Organizing Secretary of the District Vanitha Vibhag, Thiruvananthapuram, for elected as Corporation Councillor from the Fort Ward. Krishnamoorthy, Regional Officer of Indian Council for Cultural Relations felicitated the dignitaries on the occasion. Sreemathy Ramaswamy, State Secretary fof Vanitha Vibhagam introduced the guests and Meena Sankaranarayanan, State Treasurer proposed the vote of thanks.