The education ministry had clarified in the Lok Sabha that there is no proposal for menstrual leave in educational institutions. A public interest litigation was filed before the Supreme Court seeking menstrual leave for working women and female students across the country. Kerala has become the first state to grant menstrual leave to female students by reducing the minimum attendance criteria to 73% from 75%. Zomato, Swiggy and Nike have also taken a keen interest in implementing a menstrual leave policy.
Why is the policy of menstrual leave important? The denial of menstrual leave bears undertones of a patriarchal mindset and is tantamount to the non-recognition of embedded fundamental rights like the right to live and work with dignity.
The concept of menstrual leave revolves around the argument that menstruating women, non-binary persons and transgender women should be given leave during their menstruation period every month. The reasoning is based on the fact that almost 80% of women suffer from menstrual disorders like dysmenorrhoea, polycystic ovarian disorder and endometriosis. These disorders cause severe cramps, lower abdominal pain and nausea, among other distressing conditions. Many female students are not prepared — mentally or physically — to bear the discomfort. The absence of a policy on menstrual leave forces female students to attend school despite their discomfort. Insufficient sanitation facilities and poor hygiene pose further hurdles to these students. There is, consequently, an estimated 20% drop in the number of female students when they reach puberty. Younger women are not the only sufferers. The long hours at high school and college are unbearable for women suffering from periods, but they cannot afford to take period leave due to the minimum attendance criteria in educational institutions. The granting of menstrual leave in educational institutions can enable female students to study more diligently.
The Indian conception of menstruation is disturbing and undignified. Menstruation is generally associated with such stigmas as impurity. For instance, in a telling state of affairs, when Ninong Ering, the former Congress MLA of Pasighat (West), Arunachal Pradesh, presented the menstruation benefit bill, 2017 in Parliament, it was rejected by other members who labelled the topic as ‘dirty’. Such remarks by ‘change-makers’ not only demotivate those fighting for menstruation leave but also encourage the taboos associated with periods.
Dignity remains the central focus of the Constitution. The Preamble assures the dignity of individuals, while Article 21 encompasses the right to live with dignity. Even the judiciary has appreciated the concept of dignity. The apex court, for instance, has held that the right to health is a fundamental right. The term, life, includes the right to livelihood, better standards of living, and hygienic conditions at the workplace. It can thus be inferred that sanitation and menstrual health are integral to the right to live with dignity. An inability to maintain menstrual health is equivalent to an infringement on the right to live with dignity as it restricts the opportunity to live better during periods.
Even the international instruments that India ratified acknowledge the indispensability of dignity. For instance, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, with its Preamble, Articles 1 and 22, explicitly talks about preserving individuals’ dignity. Considering these standards, countries like Japan and Indonesia have brought policies for menstrual leave, imparting dignity to menstruating women. The Indian government must start deliberations to preserve women’s rights. There must be systematic attempts to de-stigmatise menstruation. Introducing specific legislation to deal with menstrual leave would be the first step.
Archita Agrawal is a student at National Law University, Jabalpur
