SC asks centre to prepare SOPs for management of menstrual hygiene for girls in schools

Supreme Court asked the Centre to prepare Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and formulate a national model to be adopted by all the states and Union Territories for managing menstrual hygiene for girls studying in schools.

Terming the issue as of immense importance, the top court said the Centre should engage with all the stakeholders for implementation of uniform national policy on management of menstrual hygiene in schools, including government and government-aided schools.

A bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justices PS Narasimha and JB Pardiwala appointed secretary of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MOHFW) as the nodal officer to coordinate with all the states and UTs and collect relevant data for formulating a national policy.

Tt the present stage, we are of the considered view that Centre should engage with all the stakeholders for implementation of the uniform national policy with a leeway for the states and UTs to modify the scheme as per their local needs, it said. 

The bench said keeping in mind the implementation of the scheme, all the states and UTs are directed to submit their menstrual hygiene management strategies and plans which are being executed either with the help of funds provided by central government or their own, to the Mission Steering Group (MSG) of the National Health Mission (NHM).

The bench said, All states and UTs are directed to notify the appropriate ratio of girls’ toilets for residential and non-residential schools in their respective territories. It added that all the states and UTs are directed to make provision for ensuring availability of quality low-cost sanitary pads, vending machines in schools.

All states and UTs are further directed to ensure that disposal mechanisms are available for schools/school complexes having girls’ enrolment in upper-primary/ secondary/higher secondary classes for safe disposal of sanitary pads, it said. In an affidavit filed before the top court, the Health ministry has said it has undertaken awareness and training programmes and made necessary resources available to girls across the country.

It is submitted that public health is a state subject and the responsibility of providing healthcare services is that of respective state governments. The Central government and its agencies are not the implementing bodies for schemes relating to menstrual health; and it is in fact the states and their agencies which are at the forefront of enforcement of the policies, the ministry said.