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More than 60 young women at a school in India have said they were forced to strip and show their underpants to teachers in order to prove that they were not on their period.

Some 68 female students were told to undress after a used sanitary napkin was found in the garden of Sahjanand Girls Institute in the city of Bhuj.

"The principal abused and insulted us, asking which of us were having our periods. Two of us who were menstruating stepped aside," said one of the students, as quoted by the Hindustan Times.

"Despite this, we were all taken to the washroom. There, female teachers asked us to individually remove our undergarments so they could check if we were menstruating."

The college, located in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's home state of Gujarat, is run by the conservative Swaminarayan Hindu sect.

"The girls were informed about the hostel rules before they took admission," college trustee Pravin Pindoria told the AFP news agency.

These rules include restrictions on menstruating females, who are not allowed to enter the temple and kitchen, socialise or touch other students or sleep inside the hostel, according to local media reports. While menstruating, students must stay in the basement.

India's National Commission for Women said that it was investigating the incident.

Menstruation stigmatised in many parts of South Asia


In neighbouring Nepal, some 77 per cent of Nepalese girls are forced to sleep outside of their home while on their period.
(Reuters: Navesh Chitrakar)

Menstruation is heavily stigmatised in much of India and other parts of South Asia, where women are often forbidden from places of worship while on their period.

According to UNICEF, in India, "menstruation is considered dirty and impure and during periods girls are discouraged to attend school and stay at homes".

The country scrapped a controversial tax on sanitary pads in 2018, which was seen as eliminating a major barrier to girls attending school.

As many as eight in 10 Indian women and girls are estimated not to have access to sanitary pads.

In 2017, a 12-year-old girl killed herself after being shamed by a teacher in front of male classmates for having a period stain on her uniform.

In neighbouring Nepal, so-called "menstruation huts" are still widespread, with a recent study showing some 77 per cent of Nepalese girls are forced to sleep outside of their home while on their period.

"A large number of girls drop out of schools around puberty owing to lack of sanitation and privacy," wrote Vageshwari Deswal, a legal scholar at the University of Delhi, in response to the incident at Sahjanand Girls Institute.

"People need to know and understand that it is a normal physiological function of womanhood. Having periods is not something to be ashamed of."