Chhaupadi practice declining in Mugu
Summary
Chhaupadi is gradually declining in Mugu as awareness grows and families begin keeping menstruating women in the house instead of separate sheds. Health officials say the practice remains harmful and call for sustained community-level campaigns to end it.
Key Points
- Durga Laxmi Rawal says the Chhaupadi practice has weakened in her village in Chhayanath Rara Municipality, Mugu, compared with the past.
- She described being forced into a cold, unsafe cowshed during menstruation and denied nutritious food, rest and normal family contact.
- Rawal says her family has recently begun allowing her to stay in an outer room of the house instead of the cowshed.
- District Hospital chief Dr. Nirmal Nagarkoti says menstrual isolation harms women’s health and urges continuous awareness campaigns to end Chhaupadi.
