14 Feb

Menstrual Hygiene a Fundamental Right

Content

• Why in News?
• Menstrual Health Challenges in India
• Supreme Court Verdict
• Key Directions Issued
• Significance of the Ruling
• Government Measures
• Challenges and the Way Forward

Why in News?

On 30 January 2026, the Supreme Court of India delivered a landmark judgment declaring that menstrual health is part of the fundamental right to life and dignity under Article 21 of the Constitution. This ruling represents a transformative moment in applying constitutional rights to gender-specific health needs, reframing menstrual health not as an optional welfare measure but as an enforceable constitutional guarantee.

Menstrual Health Challenges in India

Menstrual health management (MHM) encompasses access to safe menstrual products, clean and private sanitation facilities, water, information on menstrual hygiene, and safe disposal mechanisms. In India, millions of girls and women face barriers to menstrual hygiene due to:

• Social stigma and cultural taboos that treat menstruation as impure or shameful.
• Lack of access to affordable and hygienic menstrual products.
• Inadequate sanitation infrastructure, especially in rural and low-income urban areas.
• Limited menstrual health education in schools and communities.

These barriers not only jeopardise physical health with risks of infections and reproductive tract disorders, but also have broader socio-economic impacts, including school absenteeism, reduced educational attainment, and diminished workforce participation among women. Existing public health and education policies have recognised the importance of menstrual hygiene, but implementation gaps have limited their effectiveness.

Supreme Court Verdict: Rights and Directives

Constitutional Grounds

In its 2026 judgment, the Supreme Court held that menstrual health is an intrinsic part of the right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution. The court emphasised that:

• Dignity and bodily autonomy are core components of the right to life. Being unable to manage menstruation with dignity constitutes a violation of this right.
  
• Privacy and health needs associated with menstruation cannot be treated as incidental or secondary to other rights but must be ensured as actionable entitlements.
  
• Right to education (Article 21A) is closely linked: when inadequate menstrual hygiene infrastructure and products force girls to miss school or discontinue education, their constitutional right to free and compulsory education is undermined.

The court thus integrated menstrual health into the broader constitutional framework of dignity, equality, and educational access.

Key Directions Issued

To operationalise the right to menstrual health, the Supreme Court directed all states and Union Territories to implement the following measures:

1. Free Supply of Menstrual Products
   All schools government, private, aided, and unaided, must provide free, oxo-biodegradable sanitary napkins to students.
2. Functional Sanitation Infrastructure
   Schools must ensure gender-segregated, private, and functional toilets with water supply, safe disposal mechanisms, and space for menstrual management.
3. MHM Corners and Sensitisation
   Establish dedicated menstrual health management (MHM) corners stocked with essentials and ensure curriculum and teacher training to sensitise staff and students about menstrual health, breaking taboos and stigma.
4. Accountability and Compliance
   States must report compliance within a specified timeframe, with penalties for non-implementation, including derecognition of non-compliant schools.

This directive reframes menstrual health as a rights-based entitlement rather than a policy choice, placing clear implementation responsibilities on state machinery.

Significance of the Ruling

1. Gender Justice and Dignity

The verdict underscores that biological processes should not become barriers to dignity, autonomy, or education. By recognising menstrual health as part of Article 21, the court has elevated menstrual hygiene from a welfare subject to a justiciable constitutional right.

2. Enabling Equal Opportunity in Education

Studies have shown that inadequate menstrual hygiene facilities contribute to school absenteeism and dropout among adolescent girls. By linking menstrual health with the Right to Education, the court has addressed a key gender gap in educational attainment.

3. Public Health Outcomes

Improved MHM infrastructure and free access to hygiene products can reduce infections and other reproductive health issues. It also signals that public health policy must integrate gender-specific needs into mainstream planning.

4. Normative Shift in Public Policy

The ruling challenges entrenched stigma, shifting the narrative from viewing menstrual hygiene as a private or cultural matter to a state obligation rooted in constitutional rights.

Government Measures to Improve Menstrual Hygiene

• Scheme for Promotion of Menstrual Hygiene
  A centrally supported public health initiative focusing on adolescent girls (10–19 years), especially in rural areas. It combines awareness generation, affordable access to sanitary napkins, and guidance on safe and environmentally responsible disposal practices. The scheme also uses community platforms such as schools, Anganwadi centres, and health outreach to normalise conversations around menstruation and reduce stigma.
  
• Menstrual Hygiene Policy for School-Going Girls
  This policy framework seeks to ensure that girls can manage menstruation with dignity within school premises. It promotes availability of low-cost menstrual products, gender-segregated functional toilets with water supply, and safe disposal mechanisms such as incinerators. Importantly, it integrates menstrual health education into the school curriculum so that awareness and behavioural change accompany infrastructure support.
  
• Pradhan Mantri Bharatiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana (PMBJP)
  Through more than 16,000 Janaushadhi Kendras, the programme provides oxo-biodegradable ‘Suvidha’ sanitary napkins at ₹1 per pad, significantly improving affordability for low-income users. The scale of outreach is reflected in cumulative sales crossing 96 crore pads by November 2025, indicating both growing demand and expanding access to hygienic menstrual products.
  
• ASHA Network (Community-level Outreach)
  Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) act as grassroots change agents, distributing subsidised sanitary napkin packs (₹6 for 6 pads) and conducting monthly community meetings. These sessions address myths and taboos, promote hygienic practices, and link menstrual health with broader reproductive and adolescent health awareness.
  
• Women & Child Development Initiatives
  Menstrual health awareness has been mainstreamed into flagship social programmes such as Mission Shakti (including Beti Bachao Beti Padhao), Rashtriya Kishor Swasthya Karyakram, and Scheme for Adolescent Girls. These initiatives address menstrual hygiene within a broader framework of nutrition, health education, and empowerment, ensuring that adolescent girls receive integrated support rather than isolated interventions.
  
• Infrastructure & Education Measures
  
  • Samagra Shiksha provides financial assistance to schools for installing sanitary pad vending machines and incinerators, strengthening the physical infrastructure required for menstrual hygiene management.
    
  • Swachh Bharat Mission issues national guidelines on menstrual hygiene management in rural areas, emphasising sanitation infrastructure, behaviour change communication, and community participation.
    
  • University Grants Commission (UGC) Advisory directs Higher Educational Institutions to ensure accessible sanitary facilities at visible and convenient locations, extending menstrual health support beyond schools to colleges and universities.

Challenges and the Way Forward

While the ruling is progressive, effective implementation will require overcoming several challenges:

1. Administrative Capacity and Funding

Ensuring functional sanitation facilities and free distribution of menstrual products across all schools demands continuous resource allocation and monitoring. It is essential that budgetary provisions at both the central and state levels prioritise MHM.

2. Awareness and Stigma Reduction

Legal recognition must be complemented by grassroots awareness campaigns to dismantle deep-seated taboos. Curriculum integration and community education are vital for changing social attitudes.

3. Monitoring and Accountability

Clear mechanisms for monitoring compliance and addressing violations must be institutionalised, including periodic reporting and third-party evaluations to ensure realisation of rights on the ground.

Conclusion

The Supreme Court’s declaration that menstrual health is a fundamental right under Article 21 marks a historic expansion of constitutional jurisprudence in India. It reinforces that dignity, bodily autonomy, and equality are not abstract ideals but must be tangibly secured for all, especially marginalised groups. By mandating systemic reforms in schools and placing clear obligations on the state, the judgment paves the way for eliminating discrimination rooted in biological differences. 

However, translating legal pronouncements into lived realities will require sustained policy focus, adequate financing, and community engagement to ensure that menstruation no longer compromises dignity, education, or opportunity.