Sudurpashchim govt calls for public awareness against Chhaupadhi

Kailali, July 19: The Sudurpaschim Province government has called on all the District Administration Offices and local levels within the Province to conduct massive public awareness campaign against the ill social and traditional practices including Chhaupadhi. 

In Chhaupadhi practice, menstruating women and girls are confined to the Chhaugoth, an outdoor shed due to superstitious belief that if women and girls stay with their family members during menstrual time (four days), it would irate their family deities.

Against such social ill, the meeting of Office of Chief Minister and Council of Ministers convened in Dhangadi today directed all the concerned authorities within the province to run a social awareness campaign against the Chhaupadhi.

The decision was made considering the severity of a recent incident that a 28-year-old woman from Nigali at Krishnapur municipality-1 in Kanchanpur district died after snakebite while staying in a Chhaugoth during her menstruation last Saturday.  

The provincial government expressed its commitment to taking forward the abolishment of Chhaugoth and regulating discriminatory practices as untouchability, which are social blights. 

Furthermore, it has been decided that the provincial, district level and local level committees will hold regular meetings and monitor their respective areas for effective implementation of the legislation introduced by the government to eliminate Chhaupadi.

It is worth reminding that the government of Nepal had criminalized the Chhaupadhi practice early in 2017 by introducing a law. Nevertheless, the continuity of such ill practice continues to take a toll on women and girls.

The province government has decided to amplify its activism such as sensitizing people against Chhaupadhi practice, dismantling the Chhaugoth and ensuring effective implementation of legislation against Chhaupadhi among others.

Towards this, today's meeting also decided to devise an annual action-plans targeting schools, community and religious organizations within the province through the Ministry of Social Development to run awareness drive against all ill-practices and caste-based discrimination.

Earlier, the District Administration Office, Kanchanpur, had called for an urgent action to demolish all Chhaugoths in all nine local levels within the district while Krishnapur municipality, one among the 9 local levels, also recently issued similar directives, mandating the pulling down of the Chhaugoths within the municipality within 15 days. (RSS)