Odisha Deputy Chief Minister Parvati Parida announced that women employed in the state government and private sector will get a day’s paid menstrual leave on August 15.

Parida, also the Minister of Women and Child Development, announced this at an Independence Day programme in Cuttack.

The leave can be taken on the first or second day of the menstrual cycle and will be optional, Parida said. The policy is aimed at supporting the health and well-being of the menstruating people and will be extended to both the public and private sectors.

With this Odisha becomes the third state after Bihar and Kerala to implement a policy in this regard. While Bihar has had a menstrual leave policy for working women since 1992, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan announced a menstrual leave policy for female students across all state universities under the Department of Higher Education. Some companies, including Zomato, have also adopted menstrual leave policies.

This has been the subject of many discussions of late, with mixed responses from various sections of the society. While women’s advocacy groups have long urged the government to address this issue, some critics argue that such a policy could lead to negative consequences for women, potentially hampering job opportunities for them.

However, it is unlikely that a nationwide menstrual leave will become the norm as Union Women and Child Development Minister Annapurna Devi said on July 26 that there were no such proposals at present.

Earlier in July, the Supreme Court had instructed the central government to engage in discussions with relevant stakeholders to formulate a model policy for mandatory maternity leave policy. The instruction was passed by the SC when it refused to consider a plea seeking menstrual leave for female employees. The apex court had observed that the policy may encourage women for bigger participation, but it may also dissuade employers from engaging women in its workforce.

An Odia woman had spoken up for a paid menstrual leave at the United Nations Civil Conference 2024 in Nairobi, Kenya. Ranjita Priyadarshini, an activist from Odisha, had also voiced her demand for paid leave during periods at the international conference. She argued that women across the world suffer due to physical pain during their menstruation cycle.

Of over four lakh employees of the state government, around 1.5 lakh are women. Even though there was no official data in this regard, over five lakh women are estimated to be working in the private sector.