A period is considered a ‘Taboo’ in the country where girls are prevented from going to the school and behaved differently. To tackle such beliefs, Delhi High Court asked the Delhi government to provide free sanitary napkins by creating awareness programs through schemes for menstrual hygiene.
Delhi government on Friday informed the High Court bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice C Hari Shankar, they have issued guidelines to its schools to bestow education and awareness on menstrual hygiene, so as to enable girls to continue their education.
“The Directorate of Education has prepared a common, class-wise curriculum for classes VI to XII, to be administered by all Educational Vocational Guidance Counsellors,” told Delhi government to the bench.
Delhi government’s standing counsel Sanjoy Ghose said: “The Sanitary napkins are being provided free of cost to girls in government schools and all EVGCs must follow the common curriculum issued to 790 out of 1,026 government schools.”
Delhi government told the High court that there are 5,682 toilets for girls in response to a PIL seeking directions to provide access and education about menstrual hygiene to adolescent girls and free sanitary pads.
The PIL (Public Interest Litigation) asked the MCD (Municipal Corporation of Delhi) about the measures taken to create awareness about menstrual hygiene among students. To which civil bodies replied they have a plan to distribute free sanitary napkins to girls of menstrual age in the primary schools.
Delhi Government’s health government presented that under the ‘Menstrual Hygiene Scheme’ UDAAN, launched in April, a pack of six sanitary napkins at the cost of ₹6 are available to all non-school going adolescent girls. The Bench then settled the PIL.