Children fear to discuss menstruation with their parents Menstrual health takes backseat

Every year, Menstrual Hygiene Day observed on May 28 witnesses numerous awareness programmes that aim to break taboos and educate people about the importance of Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM).

Despite the efforts, MHM in Chennai takes a back seat with a huge chunk of population considering menstrual cycle “impure.”

“Indian tradition has made it into a taboo. People visit a doctor when they have any other issue, but children fear to tell their parents if they experience something strange during menstruation. As a result, numerous deaths occur due to cervical cancer. One in 10 women die due to this,” said activist Andrew Susayraj.

To change the outlook of adolescents towards menstruation, teachers and parents must open up about the topic in front of them.

While awareness and education remain some factors leading to lower MHM, lack of maintenance of infrastructure facilities seem to play a major role.

“In Chennai, one third of the people lives in slums where they do not have access to running water or clean washrooms. Also, public toilets are worse. It is a nightmare for a woman to step outside her home as she can only change her napkin after she gets back as the dingy and dirty public toilets,” said gender specialist Geetha Narayanan.

Also, facilities for disabled women are inadequate. M. Nayana, a student, complained that she had to crawl on the dirty floor of public washrooms with sanitary napkins lying all over to change her napkin. In some places, the washrooms have steps making it impossible for them to use.

Lokanayaki, a gynaecologist, says that the synthetic pads being used have cellulose, which may produce dioxin that might lead to cancer.

One of the four women, who were allegedly gangraped on the Jewar-Bulandshahr road off the Yamuna Expressway, has accused the police of trying to hush up the case and making false statements against the victims.

District magistrate B. N. Singh, SSP Love Kumar and chief medical officer Dr Anurag Bhargava had in a joint press conference on Friday ruled out allegations of rape, citing preliminary medical examination reports.

The women on Saturday recorded their statement before the additional chief judicial magistrate.

Sources said the four in their statements reiterated that they were raped.

The shocking incident had taken place on Thursday night when eight persons of a family were travelling to Bulandshahr to meet a relative at a hospital.

The women had alleged that a group of five criminals raped them at gunpoint in a field off the Yamuna Expressway and one of the four men travelling with them was shot dead when he objected to the sexual assault.

“It is disgusting that the police are trying to hush up the case and making false statements against us instead of arresting the culprits,” one of the women said.

“What was the need for making the initial medical report public? Why would we lie? The police are insensitive,” she said.

Union minister and Gautam Budh Nagar MP Mahesh Sharma had visited the victims at their residence and assured them help. — PTI