Dream beach wedding called off as locals protest in Puri | Bhubaneswar News
Puri: What was meant to be a fairytale wedding for an NRI couple turned into disappointment when local protests forced them to abandon their carefully planned ceremony on Puri’s Golden Beach on Wednesday.
The bride from Rourkela and groom from Gujarat, both working abroad, had envisioned exchanging vows against the backdrop of crashing waves at Baliapanda beach. However, local residents and tent house owners strongly opposed the event.
“We receive numerous requests for beach weddings, but they’re against the rules,” said Narendra Kumar Mohapatra, organising secretary of Puri Tent House Association. “How this particular event received permission needs investigation,” he added.
The controversy deepened when conflicting statements emerged from authorities. While executive officer of Puri Municipality, Abhimanyu Behera, claimed there were no specific rules prohibiting beach weddings, collector (Puri) Siddharth Shankar Swain contradicted him, stating no permission had been granted.
“Any event at the beach requires prior approval from the beach management committee,” Swain clarified. “No such permission was given for the wedding,” he added.
The bride’s father, Subash Chandra Barik, had reportedly paid a Rs 10,000 sanitation fee and received a conditional permission letter from municipal authorities. The conditions included post-event clean-up and a ban on single-use plastic, a copy of the letter issued by the municipality to Barik on Jan 21 revealed.
The fully-dressed couple arrived at the venue only to find their wedding tent being demolished by enforcement teams and police. They were forced to relocate their ceremony to a hotel. When contacted, the two declined to speak.
The incident has sparked a debate about the local authorities’ stance on destination weddings, highlighting the need for clear guidelines as similar events are permitted at other Indian beaches.
The bride from Rourkela and groom from Gujarat, both working abroad, had envisioned exchanging vows against the backdrop of crashing waves at Baliapanda beach. However, local residents and tent house owners strongly opposed the event.
“We receive numerous requests for beach weddings, but they’re against the rules,” said Narendra Kumar Mohapatra, organising secretary of Puri Tent House Association. “How this particular event received permission needs investigation,” he added.
The controversy deepened when conflicting statements emerged from authorities. While executive officer of Puri Municipality, Abhimanyu Behera, claimed there were no specific rules prohibiting beach weddings, collector (Puri) Siddharth Shankar Swain contradicted him, stating no permission had been granted.
“Any event at the beach requires prior approval from the beach management committee,” Swain clarified. “No such permission was given for the wedding,” he added.
The bride’s father, Subash Chandra Barik, had reportedly paid a Rs 10,000 sanitation fee and received a conditional permission letter from municipal authorities. The conditions included post-event clean-up and a ban on single-use plastic, a copy of the letter issued by the municipality to Barik on Jan 21 revealed.
The fully-dressed couple arrived at the venue only to find their wedding tent being demolished by enforcement teams and police. They were forced to relocate their ceremony to a hotel. When contacted, the two declined to speak.
The incident has sparked a debate about the local authorities’ stance on destination weddings, highlighting the need for clear guidelines as similar events are permitted at other Indian beaches.
