ABSTRACT
Menstrual health in India is a censorious issue that come together with legal, social, and cultural aspect. This journal told the meaning of menstrual cycle and its related terms. This journal described the history of menstrual health in India and also give the legal overview. It examined the rights of women given under the constitution of India and also focus on the social taboo, misinformation and silence, affecting the life of women in India. It described the myths routing all over the India related to menstruation. It also described policies, schemes framed by government of India for women facing the hurdles and other problems related to it. It also explained the barrier which women are facing to access the benefits of scheme framed by government of India in remote areas. It also provides the landmark judgements, case studies and comparative analysis of problem which women are facing while in menstrual cycle.
KEYWORDS
Menstrual cycle, Menstruation and stigma, Constitution and legal framework, judicial interpretations and judgements.
INTRODUCTION
Menstrual health is a very critical issue in India, where its dimension is diverse. Despite being a broad topic, menstrual health lacks a formal, self-described definition. the menstrual cycle is a type of natural process still complex cycle of hormonal changes which happened each month. In females, menstruation begins with the beginning of the reproductive period, which stops after the end of the reproductive period. In females, this reproductive period starts from the age of 12-13 years and continues till the age of 45-50 years. During this period, per one egg is released from the ovary every month. The process of ovulation occurs alternately in both the ovaries. In the absence of fertilization, cyclical changes occur in the uterine wall and ovaries, this cycle is called menstrual cycle. Normally this cycle completes in an average of 28 days, after which bleeding starts. Along with this blood, the unfertilized and destroyed egg also comes out through vagina. Normally this bleeding continues for about 4-5 days. One the other hand it is also very important to provide accurate information, healthcare and treatment facilities for women to handle their health properly. Menstrual health is not only related to the health of women but also linked with broader issues like social justice, gender equality and the scenario in society.
PROBLEMS THAT WOMEN FACE
There are variety of problems which women faced while menstruation, which can affect both their physical and mental health. During menstruation, a lot of women undergo with heavy bleeding, acne, bloating, a lot of pain and fatigue and so on.
Furthermore, mental health of women at that time is also as important as physical health. Even societal taboo on this issue is a wide issue to be noticed. There was a lot of myth about the menstruation still the condition is not good at present also. Women are facing a lot of issues that should be talked and should be put forward to tackle these problems. In many societies, it is still said that a taboo subject. Women are discouraged from talking about it which led to lack of awareness. society see it as embarrassment and shame which led to women hide or feel self- conscious about their periods. Even in some part of our society women kept in isolation at the time of menstruation, they are not allowed to touch the food, not allowed to cook, even they are restrained to worship god. In some communities, at the time of menstruation women are called as impure or unclean, which leads to exclusion from certain rituals that impact on their health badly. Many women are not provided with the right education about menstruation, this lack of knowledge can lead to difficulty, fear among them. At the same time the affordability of the menstrual product like sanitary pads, napkins and menstrual cups can be expensive which can make them inaccessible for women in low- income communities. This may lead to use the unhygienic alternatives, which results in health issues. In rural areas, there are unavailability of these basic amnesties that can worsen the situation.
Currently, women who are working somewhere has to go to the workplace, where they face discrimination, many workplaces do not offer them paid leave for menstrual health, which result in women having to work through discomfort or take unpaid leave, for securing their job. In some workplaces may lack the appropriate restroom facilities or access of basic product creating extra difficulties for women during menstruation.
There are many societies, where mensuration is still seen as a women’s issue with short involvement from men in breaking the taboo or giving support. This gender inequalities in both family and societal statics. In many countries, there are no laws that protect women’s rights such as paid menstrual leave. These societal challenges not only affect women’s physical and emotional well-being but also make obstacle for them to participate in education, work and social life, making gender inequalities.
HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT POLICIES DEALING WITH MENSTURATION
If we talk about the menstrual cycle at ancient time, this was considered very divine and women were considered very powerful at the time of menstruation. In ancient times, in rituals, women were isolated and considered impure during the menstrual cycle sometimes. In middle theory, menstruation was considered a method or way to get rid of excess blood and impurities. At that time, the discussion about the same was considered shameful and was avoided. In 18th and 19th century, the study related to menstrual cycle has given importance and brought the problems and false ideology related to impurity of women at the time of menstruation. In 20th century, the menstrual products came into existence like sanitary pads, tampons etc. Nowadays, menstruation is considered as an important biological and normal process.
Government has introduced so many schemes to deal with the problems that women are facing during the menstrual cycle. Many states government brought the schemes making the education compulsory relating to menstruation. Government is running campaigns to create awareness and make public comfortable to discuss about the menstrual cycle publicly. Many countries have implemented the subsidies, exemptions in tax to make the products more affordable to poor women and women living in remote areas. Government is trying to provide training to healthcare providers for better administration and effective enforcement. Government should focus on proper sanitation in educational institutions and public places. The central government came up with a notification and announced the national guidelines on menstrual hygiene management. The ministry of health and family welfare has introduced a scheme in 2014 for promotion of menstrual hygiene known as menstrual hygiene scheme. The aim of this scheme is to promote awareness, access of good products in rural areas. Department of pharmaceuticals has introduced a scheme called Jan Aushadhi Suvidha sanitary napkin (JSSK) in 2019, the purpose of this scheme is that eco-friendly pads have been made available at lowest price. These policies are part of ongoing work to improve the condition of menstrual health and spread awareness all over the region.
RIGHTS OF WOMEN GIVEN UNDER LAW
There are constitutional provisions, laws and judicial interpretation related to menstruation rights of women that provide gender equality, dignity, health and education. However, there is no specific laws that deals with the menstrual rights of women in our constitution. In our constitution there are several provisions that deals with menstrual rights of women indirectly in some sense such as Article 14,15,21 and Article 21-A also directive principles of state policy (Article 47). Article 14 and 15 talks about equality before the law, providing that every person should be treated equally and fairly under the law. On the other hand, article15 prohibits discrimination on the basis of caste, race, sex or place of birth and specifically states that no discrimination on the basis of sex. Menstrual health sees as a gender equality issue, menstruation is a gendered issue and have discriminatory practices like taboo and a lot of restrictions can be challenged under article 15. Article 21 ensures right to life which include live with dignity. This right has been interpreted by the supreme court to include rights to health in which access to healthcare, good amount of nutrition and sanitation is included. Under right to health menstrual health is also come, right to health is a broad interpretation. In this article all women have right to basic health services, including hygiene and all. It also ensures that menstruation does not hamper their right to life and dignity.
Article 21-A says that right to free and compulsory education for all children between the age of 6-14 year. This article ensures that children especially girls, have access to quality education. Menstrual health education is very important for ensuring awareness among them. Education is not only for to know about the menstrual health but also to learn about hygiene and how to manage menstruation with dignity and respect. Inadequate education about menstrual health leads to a lot of problems among society such as taboo, shame and that give rise to a lot of health complications yet these issues can be prevented by providing them proper awareness in schools. For that, educational curriculum should include menstrual health management and awareness as part of basic education and everyone should understand the importance of education it plays a very important role to deal with these problems. Article 47 directs the state to raise the level of nutrition and to improve the public health in the country. As we know that Directive principles are not justified means they are not legally enforceable. They guide the government in matters of public welfare. For that, this can be seen as a basic government initiative aimed to improve the public health which includes menstrual health. The state is responsible to ensure the adequate basic health services for all and provide them basic amnesties. As we know that menstrual health is not explicitly mentioned in our constitution, yet several provisions of our constitution support the right to menstrual health through their broader rights like equality, health, education and dignity. Along with judicial interpretations and government policies, help in the knowing the need for menstrual heath rights, ensuring all to have access to safe and secure life with adequate education and clean environment.
LANDMARK JUDGEMENTS RELATED TO MENSTRUATION
Several landmark judgements have given by Indian courts dealing with women’s menstrual cycle giving importance to women, their rights, hygiene and health. Many judgements have also given by courts of other countries to address the issues which women does face at the time of their menstrual cycle. There are so many notable judgements as example. In 2020, the state government of Bihar focusing to address the problems at workplace during the menstrual cycle allowed women to take paid menstrual leave of two days each month. While the idea of menstrual leave was not accepted by all state governments and central government, it led to important discussions about policies at workplace across all over the India regarding menstruation, women’s health and hygiene. In Padman case of 2018, Supreme Court of India has dealt with issues surrounding menstrual hygiene, mostly in relation to availability and accessibility of sanitary products like pads etc. However, this judgement does not particularly deal with menstruation only, but it gave importance to menstrual cycle and hygiene management, and increased awareness among general public on the sensitive problems usually faced by women during the menstruation. A very important case of 2018 named ‘The Sabarimala Temple Entry Case’ brought the problems of women in the limelight. In that particular case, women were restricted to get entry in the temples during their menstrual cycle process arguing to preserve the sanctity of temple showing women impure during the period of menstruation. The Supreme Court of India in that case ruled that the practice to restrict women to get entry into temple is unconstitutional as it violates the right to equality and right to religion which is enshrined in the Article 14 and Article 25 of Indian Constitution respectively. Menstrual health is a fundamental human right conveyed by world health organisation. A landmark resolution on menstrual hygiene management (MHM) human rights and gender equality was adopted at the 56th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, held in Geneva in 2024. It said that menstrual health is a public health and human rights issue. Their mission, to prioritize menstrual health in policy-making and standard setting, and to advocate for improved menstrual hygiene provisions. Other countries like Nepal, United States, Canada, Kenya etc. gave importance to women’s rights, hygiene and health quashing the old practice which isolated or restricted to do anything during the period of their menstrual cycle. The concept of menstrual leave is given limelight by the Odisha government’s policy for menstrual leave. This is not a supreme court ruling, yet Odisha government made a significant move by introduced this leave policy for women in state-run institutions. These judgements have given a great impact if it combined with the state policies and initiatives then it will be easy to tackle the situation effectively and safeguarding the rights of women.
SUGGESTIONS
After taking all the problems into consideration, it becomes very important to solve the issues which women are facing at their workplace, temples etc. There can be ways to solve that issues like government may organize the free campaigns to create awareness among the general public. Government shall make sanitary products like pads, tampons etc. available to every woman without levying any tax or at the concessional rate of tax. Government shall give paid menstrual leave of two-three days every month and also shall make compulsory for private recruiters to provide the same to women employees working at their respective organizations. All government and private employer shall give monthly allowance to each female employee to buy sanitary products along with other allowances and basic salary. Other than that, they should keep workplace clean to preserve the health of the women employees. Legislature should make strict laws regarding the penalty for people who treat women impure or restrict them to get entry into any religious place during the period of their menstrual cycle. Government should execute all the laws dealing with the same fairly and properly. Government may provide training to healthcare providers for better administration and effective enforcement. Government should focus on proper sanitation in educational institutions and public places.
CONCLUSION
The topic is very sensitive as we know, it reflects the diverse dimensions of rights, stigma, and access, highlights the need for comprehensive reforms. In recent years, the progress for the same has been made through multiple efforts such as introduced a significant number of policies which aimed to reduce the stigma in society and improving education for menstrual health and awareness for menstrual hygiene yet challenges remain. At the same time legal implications must address the gap between in education, affordability, and accessibility mainly for the rural and disadvantage people. Making laws for more supportive and ensuring smooth enforcement of existing laws or provisions that will be crucial to curb the issues. Furthermore, efforts are needed to challenge the societal stigmas and taboos that hindering women’s life and restricting their full participation in society. In this context, a more open and structural approach to menstrual health can give a transformative result and advancing gender equality, public health and human dignity in India. By creating, a supportive environment that gives individuals to manage their menstrual health properly, leading to better quality and mandate in life.
Richa Soni, New law college ( Bhartiya Vidyapeeth university, pune).