This worrying statistic highlights the region’s need for inclusive and accessible healthcare services. This alarming number also serves as a reminder for the pressing need for comprehensive, cost-effective healthcare services in the region.

Menstrual health problems and vaginal health problems are the two broad and basic categories into which the said issues faced by north eastern women can be divided into. According to the survey, 55% of respondents experience menstrual health problems, with Polycystic Ovarian Disorder (PCOD) being the most common amongst them, which affects 36% of women. Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS), which affects 12% of women, was another major issue faced by the women of north east when it came to menstrual health.

In terms of vaginal health, Pelvic Inflammatory Disorder (PID) affects 24% of women. Notably, PID is an infection of the reproductive system that can lead to infertility, pelvic discomfort, and other issues. The survey further provided that 18% of women in the area were affected by candidiasis, a fungus that is often known as a yeast infection.

Further dissecting the survey findings, 56% of women from North East suffer from or have suffered from menstrual health issues and 42% of the women suffer from or have suffered from vaginal health issues. The survey saw the participation of 85% of women above the age 35 years and 15% who are below the age 35 years.

Vishal Gupta, Founder Gynoveda, who co-developed the period test along with the doctors shared, “This is the largest menstrual and vaginal health survey conducted by any Indian brand. It has been thoughtfully designed to enable women to provide data about their intimate health in a private and confidential manner. This survey enables us to develop authentic and accessible Ayurvedic solutions to help women gain freedom from these problems.

Northeast women not alone, another survey highlighted the need for awareness of menstrual hygiene for women in Srinagar:

In June 2023, Dr. Auqfeen Nisar, a doctor at the Government Medical College in Srinagar, conducted a study that shed light on the alarming fact that more than 60% of women in Srinagar still used, and primarily relied on, cloth for their menstrual health care. While cost is frequently cited as a barrier, it was provided by the doctor that the most significant challenge that poses women in Srinagar was a lack of awareness and understanding regarding the need of utilising sanitary napkins.

Dr. Nisar’s hospital-based surveys revealed that only around half of the women surveyed were using sanitary napkins. Even among those who did use pads, there was a common ignorance of their importance. It was provided that without understanding the health advantages they provided, many women resorted to wearing pads merely because they were readily available.

 “Many women are using pads simply because they are available, but they do not understand the importance of using them,” Dr. Nisar explained to FeminismInIndia.

Dr. Nisar underlined the necessity of community awareness campaigns to educate women about menstrual hygiene in order to tackle this critical issue. She also exhorted the government to provide better quality pads at affordable prices. Although the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has introduced a scheme promoting menstrual hygiene among adolescent girls in rural areas, doctors argue that it has not reached enough women. They call for increased awareness of the scheme and enhanced accessibility to sanitary napkins as provided by the FII. 

“The government should provide good quality pads at affordable prices so that women can switch to using them. This will help to keep them away from infections and other health problems,” Dr. Nisar emphasised, as provided by FII.

Dr. Nisar also highlighted the potential health risks associated with cloth usage during menstruation. Cloth can harbour bacteria and harmful microorganisms, leading to infections. Sanitary napkins, on the other hand, provide a safer option for women. The government’s role is crucial in educating women about these risks and making sanitary napkins more affordable for all.

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31-year-old Villy Kuho is originally from Nagaland. She is a content writer and lives in Vashi. Ever since the Covid-19 outbreak she has been facing varying degrees of discrimination and harassment due to her ethnicity.

“Discrimination has always been a problem for people from the North East, but it has intensified ever since the coronavirus outbreak. In fact, the first time I experienced something was when I had to go to Guwahati for some personal work,” she says. The incident took place on February 7, 2020 in the lounge of the Mumbai airport where Kuho had paid for a table to have her meal. “A young man who had not paid for the table, requested if he could sit with me. I agreed out of kindness. After a few minutes, he asked me if I was Chinese,” she recalls. “When I said no, he said he asked because or the coronavirus. I did not respond. It was offensive and insensitive, but I did not want to create a scene.”

But more such experiences followed and discrimination evolved into full blown ostracism and public insults. Sometime, Kuho commutes to and from her workplace in the western suburbs using public transport. “Once while travelling by train in early March, as soon as I took a seat, the lady next to me got up. I thought she was about to alight. But later on, I saw her get down at the same station as me. It means she just did not want to sit next to me. She gave me dirty looks and walked away,” recalls Kuho adding, “Then recently these guys heckled me. They were on a bike and zipped past me yelling, ‘Corona, Corona, Corona’. It was shocking!” Even when people don’t do anything this drastic, she often hears them muttering under their breath, giving her dirty looks or making an effort to stay far away from her.

“People are ignorant. But I don’t react most of the time. What if they retaliate against someone else? I find it best to not respond to people who insult me or make fun of me,” says Kuho highlighting her underlying concerns. But Kuho is not alone.

Recently two Manipuri girls were heckled in Bandra. But they in turn scolded their abuser and a local constable had to intervene. A video of the incident went viral and may be viewed here.

According to Thotmahai Raingam, Vice President, Tangkhul Welfare Mumbai and Former Advisor, Naga Student Union Mumbai, “There are over a lakh people from North Eastern states living, working and studying in different parts of Maharashtra. Mumbai and its suburbs are home to anywhere between 30,000 to 40,000 such people.” There are also nearly 3,000 people belonging to the Tangkhul community in Mumbai. These are Naga people, but from Manipur.

Raingam has been receiving complaints of discrimination and harassment from several people. “They call us Chinese or use racial slurs like Chinki. They accuse us of spreading the virus. Sometimes they call us Corona. It happened recently to my friend just outside Kurla station. Vendors surrounded him and started heckling him using racial slurs. In another case in Malad, a friend went with his family for a medical check-up, and every other patient in the waiting area just got up and stepped away from them.”

“There are also other ways of discrimination that we fear. This is the end of the month, cash and supplies are drying up. What if landlords start evicting us using non-payment of rent as a pretext? As it is, neighbours have become hostile. In fact, a Manipuri girl was not allowed to enter a shop when she went to purchase groceries,” he says.

Leo Tharmi Raikhan, who is a senior and highly respected member of the community says that most of the people from the northeast live in areas like Kalina, Vakola, Juhu and Mira Road in rental accommodations. “Many of them are daily wage earners or have extremely low incomes. These people work in hotels and restaurants, spas and salons, some work in call centers. They are under pressure to pay rent and fear eviction. It would be helpful if the Maharashtra government issued an advisory to landlords to relax rent payment during these trying times,” he urges. The 34-year-old has been living in Mumbai for 19 years. He previously worked in the hospitality industry and presently has his own spa and salon business in BKC. Raikhan is not only the President of the North East Catholics Association, but also the President of the BJP Christian Minorities Cell’s North Central Mumbai division.

Related:

Racists target Indians from North-East amidst Covid pandemic 

The post They zipped past me on a bike yelling “Corona, Corona, Corona”: Naga woman in Mumbai appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Barely 3%, or six of 180 seats, across the three state assemblies (60 seats for each state) have gone to women–three each in Meghalaya and Tripura and none in Nagaland, show election data in this March 2018 report by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), a non-partisan advocacy.
 
This is a third of the national average of women representatives in state assemblies (9%), and a quarter of women’s representation in Parliament (12%), as IndiaSpend reported on March 8, 2016. Globally, India ranks 148 among 193 member-nations of the UN for women’s representation in parliament.
 
The low representation across these states comes despite a 48% rise in the number of women contesting elections in the three states this year–from 42 women in 2013 to 62 in 2018.
 
Women’s representation in decision-making is critical for socio-economic and political transformations, shows this UN study on women’s political participation and leadership.
 
Low participation of women in politics in the northeast region runs contrary to their performance on other gender development indices–where these states rank among the best in India–as IndiaSpend reported here, here and here.
 
Nagaland: No woman elected in 55 years
 
In a continuing trend since the state was formed in 1963, no woman has been elected to the Nagaland state assembly.
 
For the first time in 15 years since 2003, the state recorded five women contesting the elections, according to this ADR state report. In 2003, three women stood for the election; none were elected. In these 15 years, no woman stood or contested elections in Nagaland.
 
On a number of gender development indicators, Naga women do better than the Indian average. Fewer women here suffer from anaemia (23.9%), are forced into early marriage before 18 years of age (13.3%) or report spousal violence (12.7%). Most women in the state (97.4%) have a say in household decisions.

Source: Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) report 2018 and Election Commission of India reports 2013, 2008 and 2003
 
Tripura: High female literacy but scant women MLAs
 
In Tripura, of 297 candidates who contested the 2018 assembly elections, 24 were women, shows this ADR state report. While this is nine more women than in 2013 (15), only three were elected–two fewer than in 2013 and equal to the state’s female representation in 2008.  
 
The newly elected women representatives include two from the BJP, which won 35 seats, displacing the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M). Of the 16 successful candidates of the CPI-M, one is a woman.
 
In the previous state assembly election in 2013, fewer women (15) had contested the election. Yet five were elected, two more than this term.
 
This low representation persists despite Tripura’s female literacy rate (89.5%) being among India’s highest, as IndiaSpend reported on February 17, 2018.

Source: Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) report 2018 and Election Commission of India reports 2013, 2008 and 2003
 
Meghalaya: 33 women contested, three won
 
In matrilineal Meghalaya–where family descent is traced through the mother rather than the father–33 of 370 candidates standing for the 2018 state assembly elections were women, according to this state report by ADR.
 
Of these, three women, or 5% of 59 members of the legislative assembly, were elected. The state recorded its highest representation over the last 15 years since 2003 in 2013 when four of 25 women who stood for the elections won.
 
In the recent elections, the Congress was the single largest party, garnering 21 seats of which two are held by women.
 
The BJP, with two seats–both held by male candidates–forged an alliance with National People’s Party (NPP), United Democratic Party, Hill State People’s Democratic Party and the People’s Democratic Front to form the government in the state.
 
The new coalition has one woman elected from the NPP, which won 19 seats.
 
Meghalaya boasts of one of the best literacy rates (82.8%) for women in the country and has amongst the lowest rates of early marriage (16.9%). Most women in the state (91.4%) have a say in household decisions–higher than the national average (84%). However, the matrilineal state’s performance on gender indices has been slipping, as IndiaSpend reported on February 26, 2018: From 2006 to 2016, the rate of crime against women has risen three-fold from 7.1 per 100,000 population to 26.7.

Source: Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) report 2018 and Election Commission of India reports 2013, 2008 and 2003
 
Anomaly of women’s empowerment in the northeast
 
Most of the states in the northeast region, like the rest of India, follow a patriarchal structure.
 
Last year, in February 2017, violence broke out over women’s political participation in municipal elections in Nagaland, killing two persons.
 
Traditional tribal bodies vehemently protested the imposition of Article 243 (T) in the state, which mandates 33% reservation for women belonging to scheduled castes and tribes in urban local bodies. The law was viewed by men as an infringement on Naga tradition and customs, as protected under Article 371(A) of the Constitution, and the state government argued it would impede the fragile peace in Nagaland, the Hindu reported on February 8, 2017.
 
Women’s groups, such as the Nagaland Mothers’ Association and Joint Action Committee for Women’s Reservation, challenged the state assembly’s decision in the Guwahati High Court, and later the Supreme Court, which upheld the women’s right to participation.
 
Traditional Naga law clearly defines gender roles and gendered responsibilities, explains this article in the Conversation from March, 2017. While men deal with societal issues, including village administration and councils, women are in charge of domestic issues and kept out of public office.
 
Even in Meghalaya, matriliny serves to reinforce tradition more than empower women, according to this 2012 Shillong Times report. “Women are not groomed to take part in politics due to various traditional and cultural restrictions but there has been a gradual change wherein women are allowed to take part in the Dorbar,” the report said.
 
“What makes it different from the rest of India is that the women in these societies have spaces where they can get organised, prioritise their agenda, voice their opinion and enact within their prescribed normative condition,” explained this April 2017 paper in the Indian Sociological Society, a journal. “The difficulty arises when these spaces get a defined rigidity. Political space has largely been an exclusive domain of men. Hence decision making and policy intervention takes a back seat for these women.”
 
(Mohan is an intern and Saldanha is an assistant editor with IndiaSpend.)

Courtesy: India Spend
 

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