Chandigarh: Six Indian varsities offer menstrual leave, says student council prez to PU panel

Panjab University Campus Students Council (PUCSC) president on Monday submitted a proposal highlighting how six educational institutions in the country have a functional menstrual leave policy so the varsity can frame its own policy on similar lines.

The development comes in the backdrop of a Panjab University (PU) committee formed by vice-chancellor (V-C) having on January 24 held the first meeting to look into the feasibility of menstrual leave.

Singh said he has submitted the proposal to V-C Renu Vig and held a meeting with her on Monday evening. While he had been trying to get the committee to meet again before the upcoming varsity senate meeting on February 10, the date for the next meeting has not been fixed yet.

“It is under the National Menstrual Hygiene Policy of 2023 to provide such leave to students. While we had earlier asked for 12 leaves per semester for girls, we are open to debate to incorporate the pre-existing leave policy of other institutes in this,” Singh said.

Kerala’s Cochin University of Science and Technology became the first varsity in the country to start menstrual leave for female students in January 2023. Minimum attendance for female students has been reduced to 73% from 75%. Gauhati University in Assam also recently introduced a similar provision for female students. Some of the other varsities giving menstrual leave to female students include NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad, and Tezpur University among others.

Meanwhile, a member of the committee not wishing to be named discussed some of the apprehensions that the members have regarding menstrual leave. “There is an issue with the name menstrual leave and rather, it can be given to students as an extra medical leave exemption. For teaching and non-teaching staff, male employees get 10 casual leaves while female employees get 20 casual leaves at the start. This is so that females can spend time with their kids and in lieu of menstrual leave also, and something similar can be done for the students as well,” the member said.

There is also some apprehension among committee members about menstruation still being viewed as a taboo by a section of students with a more conservative view. They noted them noting that girl students may find their privacy being compromised when claiming the leave.

The PUCSC president, however, contended that an open conversation about menstruation was key to getting rid of the taboo surrounding the subject.

Meanwhile, PUCSC’s sole female member, Ranmeekjot Kaur, had opposed the initiative. Saying that while she was not completely opposed to menstrual leaves, she feels there are still some issues that need to be addressed.

“It would be a step backward to implement the leave. Women are now joining the army and other male-dominated fields. Menstruation is something that we become used to dealing with and the leaves can be adjusted within the 75% attendance rule. The extra leaves will eventually impact the quality of education that girls receive and hurt prospects during placements,” she said.

During the first committee meeting, Singh had been asked to prepare a proposal detailing a roadmap for the implementation of menstrual leave, which a member had called it standard protocol for policy changes.

Menstrual leave was first brought to fore by the National Students Union of India, with it finding space in their list of key promises in the run-up to the 2023 student council elections.