Pune: Under the Swachh Bharat and Swachh Vidyalaya mission, all government-run schools and junior colleges have been instructed to form committees dedicated to ‘Menstrual Hygiene Management’, to help adolescent girls understand the menstrual cycle and the hygienic habits to be practised in schools or colleges. Municipal commissioners and chief executive officers at the municipal corporation and Zilla Parishad level will look after committees who are primarily responsible for conducting training sessions for teachers and implementing awareness campaigns. The government aims to improve girls’ school attendance during their menstrual cycle.
According to a WHO report in 2009, as many as 12 percent of adolescent girls, globally, miss school every month while menstruating. A state-level survey discovered that only 13 percent girls in Maharashtra, in the age group of 11 to 19 years, had knowledge about menstruation prior to experiencing it first-hand. Additionally, the survey found, nearly 70 percent of these girls preferred skipping school.
Dr Sunita Tandulwadkar, a gynaecologist, said, “This is a welcome move, as girls still feel ashamed and do not know whom to approach. With this, girls will get the necessary guidance.”
Teresa David, the principal of Apte School and Junior College, said their school has been actively conducting dialogues with girls studying in Class VII and higher classes.
“We have conducted regular sessions with girl students and their mothers during the Palak-Mata Sangh meetings for students studying in Class VII and above. During these meetings, a variety of issues are openly discussed in the presence of mothers,” he said.
Some of the faculty members are also involved in the management of menstrual hygiene in the school, which is equipped with sanitary napkin dispensing machines and plans to set up an incinerator to dispose off used napkins, said David.
The state government has decided to replicate the model for schools after a pilot programme in districts like Jalna, Thane, Sindudurg, Osmanabad, Ahmednagar and Ratnagiri proved successful. The task force, comprising male and female teachers, education officers and officials from Women and Child Development Department, will be responsible for planning awareness campaigns on topics such as the biology behind menstrual cycles, its importance, hygiene habits, dietary and physical aspects.
Along with providing access to clean washrooms, schools will now have to facilitate students with changing rooms and the premises must either have a proper disposal system or an incinerator.