Church offers Rs 10,000 reward for fifth child

KOCHI: If Justice Krishna Iyer-led panel’s recommendation of a fine of Rs 10,000 (and the three-month imprisonment) for having a third child as part of the draft Women’s Code Bill had many fuming there is another cash offer that has not quite made news till date.The Kalpetta-based St Vincent De Paul Forane parish in Wayanad has already offered a reward of Rs 10,000 by way of a fixed deposit for those couples going in for their fifth child.In a bid to get the parishioners to get over any sense of shame for having many children as in the olden days, the parish has a pat for those who make it to the fourth child stage by way of honouring them at a meeting of the parish members.And for those who beget the fifth child the church takes that extra step - a fixed deposit can be redeemed after 18 years.According to a banker, a Rs 10,000 deposit over 18 years at current rates will fetch Rs 54,195.Salu Abraham Mecheril, Malabar Region coordinator of Pro Life Committee of the Kerala Catholic Bishops Council (KCBC), coordinator of the scheme, said it was not an attempt to induce couples to have more children by offering money but just a recognition for them.“It matters that we have more members in the community. If we study the population, we can see that the numbers of  members in the Nair and Namboodiri communities have come down after family planning was launched,” he said.