United Nations human rights experts have condemned the apparent excessive and disproportionate use of force by police against protesters calling for the closure of a copper smelting plant in Tamil Nadu over health and environmental concerns.

The plant is run by Sterlite Copper, a business unit of Vedanta Ltd., which is a subsidiary of the UK-based company, Vedanta Resources.

Police opened fire on thousands of protesters on 22 May, reportedly killing 12 people and injuring dozens of others marching against the expansion of the heavily polluting copper smelter in the southern port city of Thoothukudi.

The protest marked the 100th day of demonstrations against the copper smelting facility that had been proceeding peacefully. According to reports, protesters set fire to vehicles and threw stones at officers after being denied permission to march to the District Collectorate.

“We are extremely concerned by the apparent disproportionate and excessive use of force, including the use of live ammunition, against protesters marching to raise legitimate human rights and environmental concerns”, the experts said.

“We call on the Indian authorities to carry out an independent and transparent investigation, without delay, and to ensure that perpetrators of human rights violations be held accountable. The Government should uphold the rights to freedom of expression and assembly, as they are the cornerstone of democratic societies and a critical tool to identify and protect against business-related human rights abuses.”

The experts noted that local and national judicial and administrative bodies have documented water contamination, air pollution and other forms of environmental degradation linked to the copper smelting plant and related activities.

“Under the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, all business enterprises have a responsibility to respect human rights, including identifying, preventing, mitigating and accounting for how they address their adverse human rights impacts,” the experts said, calling on Sterlite Copper as well as its parent company, Vedanta Resources, to take immediate measures to mitigate pollution and to ensure access to safe water and health care.

“We urge the Indian Government to take all the necessary measures to ensure that all business enterprises respect national as well as international human rights and environmental norms, and that the Sterlite Copper’s smelting plant resumes operations only after meaningful consultation with affected communities and when fully complying with Indian environmental laws,” a joint statement issued by the experts has said.

The signatories are: Ms Anita Ramasastry, Chair of UN Working Group on human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises, Mr Baskut Tuncak, Special Rapporteur on the implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes, Ms Agnes Callamard, Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions; Mr Michel Forst, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders; Mr David Kaye, Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression; Mr. Clément Nyaletsossi Voulé, Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association; Mr. John H. Knox, Special Rapporteur on human rights and the environment; Mr. Léo Heller Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation.

The UN experts are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council’s independent human rights monitoring mechanisms. Special Procedures mandate-holders are independent human rights experts appointed by the Human Rights Council to address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. The experts are not UN staff and are independent from any government or organization. They serve in their individual capacity and do not receive a salary for their work.

SINGAPORE: Hailing the rising East which has inspired India for thousands of years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday asserted that India’s vision for the Indo-Pacific Region remains a positive one.

With each Southeast Asian country, he said, India has growing political, economic and defence relations.

Addressing the prestigious Shangri-La Dialogue here, Mr. Modi said India does not see the Indo-Pacific Region as a strategy or as a club of limited members and nor as a grouping that seeks to dominate or being directed against any country.

He is the first Indian Prime Minister to deliver the key-note address at Shangri-La Dialogue. In his nearly one-hour long speech, Mr. Modi stressed upon the need of cooperation among all nations in an inter-dependent world to meet the challenges of terrorism, cyber security, protecting the planet and non-proliferation.  He said India seeks to cooperate for architecture of peace and security in the region. 

Unveiling India’s vision, Mr. Modi said India stands “for a free, open, inclusive region, which embraces us all in a common pursuit of progress and prosperity. It includes all nations in this geography as also others beyond who have a stake in it.’’
  
Stressing that the common prosperity and security require the nations in the region to evolve, through dialogue, a common rules-based order for the region, Mr. Modi said it must equally apply to all individually as well as to the global commons.
  
“We should all be equally permitted to benefit from the use of common spaces on sea and in the air without discrimination. When we all agree to live by that code, our sea lanes will be pathways to prosperity and corridors of peace,’’ he said.

  
Seeking a level playing field for all, Mr. Modi said solutions cannot be found behind walls of protection, but in embracing change. 
  
“India stands for open and stable international trade regime. We will also support rule-based, open, balanced and stable trade environment in the Indo-Pacific Region, which lifts up all nations on the tide of trade and investment,’’ he said. 
  
Prime Minister Modi cautioned that Asia of rivalry will hold us all back and Asia of cooperation will shape this century.  “So, each nation must ask itself: are its choices building a more united world, or forcing new divisions? It is a responsibility that both existing and rising powers have. Competition is normal. But, contests must not turn into conflict; differences must not be allowed to become disputes,’’ he said.
  
Pointing to the real challenges of protecting our planet, non-proliferation and securing the people from terrorism and cyber threats, Mr Modi said these could be met when all nations work together.

Making a fervent appeal to global leaders and communities to rise above divisions and work together for a secure world, he said that no nation can shape and secure the world on its own.

“This is a world of inter-dependent fortunes and failures and no nation can shape and secure it on its own. It is a world that summons us to rise above divisions and competition to work together. Is that possible? Yes. It is possible. I see ASEAN as an example and inspiration,’’ Mr. Modi said.

“Three years ago, in Mauritius, I described our vision in one word – SAGAR, which means ocean in Hindi. And, S.A.G.A.R. stands for Security and Growth for All in the Region,’’ he said.

Mr. Modi said the Indian Ocean has shaped much of India’s history and it now holds the key to the future as well.

Describing Singapore as India’s springboard to the ASEAN, the Prime Minister said that it has been, for centuries, a gateway for India to the broader East.

He also touched upon India’s relations with the U.S., China and Russia.

“It is a measure of our strategic autonomy that India’s first Strategic Partnership, with Russia, has matured to be special and privileged,’’ he said.

On India’s global strategic partnership with the United States, he said it continues to deepen across the extraordinary breadth of the bilateral  relationship.

Referring to India-China cooperation which is expanding, Mr. Modi said trade is growing and both the countries have displayed maturity and wisdom in managing issues and ensuring a peaceful border. “There is growing intersection in our international presence,’’ he said.

New Delhi : It was found in many cases that black money was invested in properties in the names of others, even though benefits were enjoyed by the investor concealing his beneficial ownership in his tax returns. The Government had earlier amended Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988, by Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Amendment Act, 2016 to make the law stronger. With the objective of obtaining people’s participation in the Income Tax Department’s efforts to unearth black money and to reduce tax evasion, a new reward scheme titled “Benami Transactions Informants Reward Scheme, 2018”, has been issued by the Income Tax Department. This reward scheme is aimed at encouraging people to give information about benami transactions and properties as well as income earned on such properties by such hidden investors and beneficial owners.

Under the Benami Transactions Informants Reward Scheme, 2018, a person can get reward up to Rs. One crore for giving specific information in prescribed manner to the Joint or Additional Commissioners of Benami Prohibition Units (BPUs) in Investigation Directorates of Income Tax Department about benami transactions and properties as well as proceeds from such properties which are actionable under Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988, as amended by Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Amendment Act, 2016.

Foreigners will also be eligible for such reward. Identity of the persons giving information will not be disclosed and strict confidentiality shall be maintained.

Details of the reward scheme are available in the Benami Transactions Informants Reward Scheme, 2018, copy of which is available in Income Tax offices and on the official website of Income Tax Department www.incometaxindia.gov.in .

Tobacco use has declined markedly since 2000, but the reduction is insufficient to meet globally agreed targets aimed at protecting people from death and suffering from cardiovascular and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs), according to a new World Health Organisation (WHO).  Tobacco kills over 7 million people each year, despite the steady reduction in tobacco use globally, as shown in WHO’s new Global Report on Trends in Prevalence of Tobacco Smoking 2000-2025. The report shows that worldwide, 27% smoked tobacco in 2000, compared to 20% in 2016.
However, the pace of action in reducing tobacco demand and related death and disease is lagging behind global and national commitments to reduce tobacco use by 30%  by 2025 among people aged 15 and older. If the trend continues on the current trajectory, the world will only achieve a 22% reduction by 2025, the report says.
For World No Tobacco Day 2018, WHO has joined with the World Heart Federation to highlight the link between tobacco and cardiovascular diseases (CVD) –  the world’s leading causes of death, responsible for 44% of all NCD deaths, or 17.9 million deaths annually. Tobacco use and second-hand smoke exposure are major causes of cardiovascular diseases, including heart attacks and stroke, contributing to approximately 3 million deaths per year. But evidence reveals a serious lack of knowledge of the multiple health risks associated with tobacco. Â“Most people know that using tobacco causes cancer and lung disease, but many people aren’t aware that tobacco also causes heart disease and stroke – the world’s leading killers,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “This World No Tobacco Day, WHO is drawing attention to the fact that tobacco doesn’t just cause cancer, it quite literally breaks hearts.”
While many people are aware tobacco use increases the risk of cancer, there are alarming gaps in knowledge of the cardiovascular risks of tobacco use. In many countries, this low awareness is substantial; for example, in China, over 60% of the population is unaware smoking can cause heart attacks, according to the Global Adult Tobacco Survey.In India and Indonesia, more than half of adults do not know smoking can cause stroke. Other main findings from the new report include change in smoking with 1.1 billion adult smokers in the world today, and at least 367 million smokeless tobacco users. The number of smokers in the world has barely changed this century: it was also 1.1 billion in 2000.  This is due to population growth, even as prevalence rates decline.

For males aged 15 and over, 43% smoked tobacco in 2000 compared to 34% in 2015. For females, 11% smoked in 2000, compared to 6% in 2015.

Around 6.5% of the global population aged 15 and over use smokeless tobacco (8.4% of males and 4.6% of females). 

Over half of all WHO Member States have reduced demand for tobacco, and almost one in eight are likely to meet the 30% reduction target by 2025. But countries must do more to monitor tobacco use in all its forms – not only tobacco smoking. Currently, one in four countries have insufficient data to monitor their tobacco epidemic.

Worldwide, about 7%, or just over 24 million children aged 13–15, smoke cigarettes (17 million boys and 7 million girls). About 4% of children aged 13–15 years (13 million) use smokeless tobacco products.

Over 80% of tobacco smokers live in low- and middle-income countries (LMICS). Prevalence of smoking is decreasing more slowly in LMICs than in high-income countries, and the number of smokers is on the increase in low-income countries. Dr Svetlana Axelrod, WHO’s Assistant Director-General for NCDs and mental health, says: “We know what policies and actions can increase tobacco quit rates, prevent people from starting using tobacco, and reduce demand. We must overcome obstacles to implementing measures like taxation, marketing bans and implementing plain packaging. Our best chance of success is through global unity and strong multisectoral action against the tobacco industry.” Countries have committed to reducing premature death from NCDs by one-third by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals, as well as implementing the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC).  
The WHO FCTC entered into force in February 2005 and has today 181 Parties covering more than 90% of the world’s population.

The Ministry of Women and Child and Development has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Department of Women and Child Development, Uttar Pradesh, management of Home of Widows at Sunrakh Bangar, Vrindavan.  The Ministry of Women and Child Development has constructed this shelter home for widows with a capacity of 1000 inmates. 

The MoU will be in force for a period of 2 years which may be renewed for further period on satisfactory running of the Home. The Home will be run by the UP Government themselves or by any State government institution or by any civil society or by any reputed non-government organization to be decided by the State government.

According to the MoU, the Uttar Pradesh government will be responsible for activities including setting up mechanism for identifying beneficiaries, providing residential care to the widows, deploying staff as per norms with prescribed qualification and experience.  The MoU further states that senior officials of the Uttar Pradesh government shall visit and check the security staff periodically and monitor their performance.  The MoU also includes provisions for facilitating Aadhar Cards for all inmates and medical/geriatric care for inmates. 

Maneka Gandhi, Minister for Women and Child Development, has asked the States/UTs to issue necessary directions to take necessary steps for including male child victims of sexual abuse in the Victim Compensation Scheme/Fund.

In a letter, written to State Chief Ministers, she has also requests that compensation including interim compensation may be given to the victim on time. 

Pointing out that POCSO Act is gender neutral and safeguards the interest of not only the girl child but also the male child, the letter also mentions that as per NCPCR data, though 31 State Governments have notified their Victim Compensation Scheme under Rule 7, POCSO Rules, 2012, the disbursements of compensation has not been uniform or satisfactory.

The Minister has also drawn attention that in some of the States the interim compensation to child victims of sexual abuse is not being awarded to meet the immediate medical and other needs of the child for relief or rehabilitation. The letter stresses that male child who is the most neglected victim of child sexual abuse is being ignored for award of compensation and needs to be included. 

POCSO Rules, 2012 (Rule 7) envisages:

1. The Special Court may, in appropriate cases, on its own or on an application filled by or on behalf of the child, pass an order for interim compensation to meet the immediate needs of the child for relief or rehabilitation at any stage after registration of the First Information Report.  Such interim compensation paid to the child shall be adjusted against the final compensation, if any.
2. The Special Court may, on its own or on an application filled by or on behalf of the victim, recommend the award of compensation where the accused is convicted, or where the case ends in acquittal or discharge, or the accused is not traced or identified, and in the opinion of the Special Court the child has suffered loss or injury as a result of that offence. 
3. Where the Special Court, under sub-section (8) of section 33 of the Act read with sub-sections (2) and (3) of section 357A of the Code of Criminal Procedure, makes a direction for the award of compensation to the victim, it shall take into account all relevant factors relating to the loss or injury

Caused to the victim, including the following: –

• Type of abuse, gravity of the offence and the severity of the mental or physical harm or injury suffered by the child;
• The expenditure incurred or likely to be incurred on his medical treatment for physical and/or mental health;
• Loss of educational opportunity as a consequence of the offence, including absence from school due to mental trauma, bodily injury, medical treatment, investigation and trial of the offence, or any other reason;
• Loss of employment as a result of the offence, including absence from place of employment due to mental trauma, bodily injury, medical treatment, investigation and trial of the offence, or any other reason;
• The relationship of the child to the offender, if any;
• Whether the abuse was a single isolated incidence or whether the abuse took place over a period of time;
• Whether the child became pregnant as a result of the offence;
• Whether the child contracted a sexually transmitted disease (STD) as a result of the offence;
• Whether the child contracted human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) as a result of the offence;
• Any disability suffered by the child as a result of the offence;
• Financial condition of the child against whom the offence has been committed so as to determine his need for rehabilitation;
• Any other factor that the Special Court may consider to be relevant. 
• The compensation awarded by the Special Court is to be paid by the State Government from the Victims Compensation Fund or other scheme or fund established by it for the purposes of compensating and rehabilitating victims under section 357A of the Code of Criminal Procedure or any other laws for the time being in force, or, where such fund or scheme does not exist, by the State Government. 
• The State Government shall pay the compensation ordered by the Special Court within 30 days of receipt of such order. 
• Nothing in these rules shall prevent a child or his parent or guardian or any other person in whom the child has trust and confidence from submitting an application for seeking relief under any other rules or scheme of the Central Government or State Government.

The completion of four years of the NDA regime has prompted a flurry of debates over the extent to which this government has made progress on bringing the country into the era of “Achhe Din” for the masses. Comparisons are being made with the tenures of the UPA regime. Comparisons of course are always odious. Circumstances are always different especially the external environment which is difficult to control for any government. 

Even so, it is possible to take policies in a particular direction and hence intent becomes equally important in making any assessment.

As for the UPA, the biggest problem in the last few years of its tenure on the economic policy front was the paralysis in decision making that had crept into the government following a series of highly publicized scandals. These included the the notorious telecom and coal mine allotment scams. In addition, the Manmohan Singh government was faced with enormously high international crude oil prices that even touched a peak of 140 dollars per barrel at one stage. Even so, it managed to attain an average growth rate of 7.7 per cent but was 6.6 per cent in 2013-14 when its term ended,

The  Modi government, in contrast, had the good fortune of having world oil prices crash to 50 dollars within a year of taking over. This not only brought down the oil import bill and enabled them to keep the current account deficit under control, it also emboldened them to raise excise levies sharply. It brought in a revenue windfall that helped keep the fiscal deficit under check. The deficit has been brought down gradually from 4.5 per cent at the end of the UPA tenure to 3.5 per cent in the last fiscal (2018-19). This has been made possible partly due to some good luck in having a benign external environment and partly by efficient management of resources.

At the same time, unlike the well known policy paralysis of the UPA’s last term, the NDA has taken a series of major policy measures over the last four years which have had a big impact on the economy, both in a positive and negative way. The two most significant ones were demonetization and the launch of the Goods and Services Tax GST). 

Demonetisation in 2016 not only slowed down the economy for several months especially in rural areas but also created severe hardship for the common man. This was followed in mid-2017 by the introduction of GST which made times equally hard for small businesses. The growth rate slowed down owing to the double whammy of demonetization and launch of a radical new tax system. Fortunately, the GST Council gradually made the new tax system less complex and bureaucratic. This eased many problems faced by small and medium industry but much red tape still needs to be cut out of the new system.

Other significant policy decisions have also been taken over the past four years, several of which have far reaching consequences.  These include firstly, the passage of the new Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act. This pathbreaking law has brought tremendous relief to homebuyers who have been cheated over the years in a systematic way by real estate developers. The legislation which is still in the process of being ratified by states has brought a considerable measure of discipline and regulation to the real estate sector. 

The second much-needed and long awaited legislation is the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code. It has enabled companies to be declared bankrupt and hence allow the assets to be sold, ensuring that lenders get at least some of their money back. The process has begun successfully with some large entities having been sold recently enabling banks to recoup some of their losses.

The third scheme that has transformed lives is the Ujjwala scheme to provide free cooking gas to women in rural areas. This has come as a boon to women living in rural areas who were using wood as a fuel, which posed a threat to their health as well as their environment. The fourth major policy has been the launch of the Jan Dhan accounts, a much reviled programme since many of these were found to be fake accounts in order to meet government targets. Even with this caveat, there is no doubt that that the Jan Dhan scheme has expanded the scope of financial inclusion to large segments of the urban and rural poor.

Despite these problems, economic growth is still not doing too badly. Even with the impact of the twin setbacks mentioned earlier, growth in 2017-18 is expected to be around 6.6 per cent while the Reserve Bank of India expects it to accelerate to 7.4 per cent in the current fiscal. Clearly, the economy is on a upward path at this point. But it is roughly at the same level of growth as when the UPA ended its tenure. Numbers, however, do not tell the whole story. 

The NDA has certainly been more proactive in implementing economic reforms over the last four years and these will have their impact in the long run. It may thus be too early to make a clear assessment. There is no doubt, however, that this is a government that has boldly launched big ticket reforms like GST and these may finally push the economy on to a high growth path over the next few years.

(Views expressed are personal.)

The government is planning to introduce a centralize data management system which would help in keeping a track on the population of disable people, type of disability and work effectively to provide facilities to the beneficiaries and the authorities will be able to access this centralize data from anywhere.

Announcing this at a function in New Delhi to commemorate World Multiple Sclerosis Day, organised by the Multiple Sclerosis Society of India (MSSI), Mr.  K. Vikram Simha Rao, Director, Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India said, Â“There is a dire need of representation of Persons with Disability (PWD) at the government level so that more disabilities can be included in the disability act and more schemes can be introduced & benefits can be passed on to the PWDs. 

Mr.Rao also informed that Â“Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities has extended its proposal of including Multiple Sclerosis along with 20 other disabilities in the Ayushman Bharat – Health Insurance Scheme so that MS patients can avail the central government’s health scheme; this would help a MS patient to be self-reliant to an extent.”

MS is an autoimmune disease in which body’s immune system starts damaging the protective layer of the nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. There has been a considerable shift in MS prevalence in India and this has really changed the notion of considering India as a low risk zone for MS. In India, significant upsurge is needed in carrying out large scale population-based epidemiological studies to get an idea about the true incidence and prevalence rates of MS viz a viz disease burden.

World Multiple Sclerosis Day is aimed to raise awareness and understanding about Multiple Sclerosis (MS) among the general public, employers and government officials.

Calling for more research into effective treatments and practical ways to improve quality of life for people with the illness, MSSI has said there is an urgent need for the private and public sector to support multiple sclerosis organizations and patient groups, by investing in them and developing their capacity, ensure improved diagnosis and treatment, and increased access of information and resources for all. It is imperative to work together with policy makers to make treatments more affordable, either directly or through wider reimbursement by insurance or government, it said,

Dr. Kameshwar Prasad, Head of the Department of Neurology at AIIMS, said Â“A lot of research needs to be done on MS. Earlier when MRI was not available, it was hard to detect MS and it used to be considered as a rare disease but, post MRI introduction it has helped doctors diagnose MS occurrence in patient more effectively. MS is physically as well as emotionally draining illness that impacts both the patient and their families – demanding a lot of psychological strength. MS affects the patient’s mind, will-power, employment and disrupts life on the family/ friends front as well. It is about time that organizations such as MSSI, private institutions and government come together to undertake research so that preventive measures can be taken and collaboratively work towards providing affordable MS generic drugs to the patient.”

Most people with MS are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, with at least two to three times more women than men being diagnosed with the disease. In India MS is targeting children’s as well starting from the age of 16 years. As per the last study conducted in India was 2003-04 there were 200,000 reported patients were affected with MS. Post that, no study was conducted on this and it is believed that this figure must have gone up by 2 to 4 folds which could be 10 percent of world’s total Multiple Sclerosis patients.

Mr. T.D. Dhariyal, Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities, Govt. of NCT of Delhi, said Â“In these years we have noticed that the most common problem that PWDs face is the ease of accessibility. A lot of awareness needs to be created for MS and organizations like MSSI should come forward and lead the awareness creating campaign.  We are dedicated towards making Delhi the most accessible city, whether it’s related to providing facilities to MS patients, giving employment, care and allowance as well. In some cases, we have taken suo motu action and made sure that PWDs are treated equally, and their rights are rightly served.”

Multiple Sclerosis Society of India is the oldest society in India dedicated to help people affected by Multiple Sclerosis effectively manage and cope with the disease. 

NEW DELHI : The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) declared Class X results today. Thiruvananthapuram performed best amongst all regions with 99.60 % pass percentage followed by Chennai region with 97.37 % while Ajmer stands at third position with 91.86 % pass percentage. 

Total 16,24,682 students appeared in the exam out of which 14,08,594 students passed the exam. Overall pass percentage of this year is 86.70. Four students have topped the exam with 499 total marks. Details of the toppers are as follows:

Total pass percentage of boys is 85.32 % while pass percentage of girls is 88.67 % which is 3.35 % better than boys. 1,31,493 students scored more than 90% while 27,476 students scored more than 95% in this exam. This year CBSE conducted Class X exam from 5th March, 2018 to 4th April, 2018. Some more details are as follows:

Links to know the result 

As per previous years, this year also the CBSE is hosting its results on net with the technical support of National Informatics Centre (NIC). The students can access their results through following websites;

www.results.nic.in

www.cbseresults.nic.in

www.cbse.nic.in

The telephone numbers of NIC through which results can be accessed through IVRS are as follows:-

The result can be received by sending SMS for class 10 as given below:

cbse10 <rollno> <dob> <sch no> <center no> on Mobile Number 7738299899. The date of birth format is ddmmyyyy.  CBSE will also provide Class-X digital mark sheets in DigiLocker at https://digilocker.gov.in.

There should be absolutely no reason for a girl to drop out of school when she attains puberty. That a girl has to totally give up schooling or miss classes because she is undergoing a normal biological process defies all logic. 

Rough estimates suggest 23% girls in India drop-out of schools annually on reaching puberty   annually due to lack of proper menstrual hygiene management facilities including non-availability of sanitary pads and awareness of menstruation. 

In a growing economy like India, it is unacceptable that a majority of the women have to use cloth – some even polythene—as absorbent just because they cannot afford a sanitary napkin or do not have access to it. In India, there are 336 million women in the reproductive age group who lack mechanisms and means to meet their menstrual needs. Shame and stigma associated with menstruation makes things even more difficult for young women to talk about it. 

According to Dasra, a not-for-profit organisation based out of Mumbai, 52% of all girls have no knowledge about menstruation and how to manage it when they have their first period. Often, it is the mother who informs her daughter about menstruation instead of a health worker. 

Mother’s advice and information comes with lot of traditional myths and beliefs. 

Only 12% of Indian women can afford commercially available sanitary napkin which is generally the only product they have access to manage their periods. The National Family and Health Survey-4 data suggests only 62% women in India use some hygienic absorbent. Only 42% women use sanitary napkins while 16% use locally made napkins. This number of women using sanitary napkins goes up with the levels of education and wealth quintile with more educated and richer women four times more likely to use a sanitary napkin.

Poor menstrual hygiene management could result in serious urinary and reproductive tract infections with serious implications in the long run. Using a clean cloth is an alternative but this needs to be washed properly and dried in sunlight which most women are unable to do. If a cloth is dried in damp places, there is every possibility of germs and bacteria thriving on it.  Women, particularly those in the rural settings and urban slums, are also unable to maintain hygiene because there are no toilets and even if there, there is no water. Proper disposal is another major concern. 

Hence, to overcome all these barriers it is important that stigma and shame around menstruation be shunned. Menstruation is like any normal biological and physiological process of the body and needs to be treated like one. If family and community have a role to play in creating awareness about the issue, it is also important that low cost sanitary napkins be made available to girls and women to ensure hygiene. These should be made available at schools, public places and work place. The more we talk about it, the more it gets talked about.

If HIV/AIDS is no more a stigma, why should menstruation be!