By Sailendra Kumar Rokaya
Bajhang, Mar.7: Rekha Joshi, a popular Deuda singer from Sudurpaschim Province, sang a Deuda song through Thado Bhaka at the awareness cultural festival organised on the premises of Bhagwati Aadharbhut School, Dewalbaj, in Thalara Rural Municipality-3, on Friday.

Singer Joshi sang the Deuda song in Thado Bhaka to generate awareness among the locals against the evil practice of Chhaupadi, in which women during their period are sent to stay in unsafe sheds built away from their home.
Singer Joshi stressed the need for a positive role of all to minimise the discrimination against women during menstruation. She conveyed the message that menstruation is not a curse but a natural phenomenon and emphasis should be laid on sanitation to manage it in a dignified manner.

Singer Joshi is a goodwill ambassador for dignified menstrual management.
Most of the speakers at the festival said that all should be responsible for controlling violence against women because of the Chhaupadi practice prevalent in Sudurpaschim.
The cultural festival was organised by Thalara and Chhabispathibhera Village Rural Water Resources Management Project on Thursday and Friday in Bannichaur of Chhabispathibhera village and Dewalbaj of Thalara village.
Chairman of Chhabispathibhera Rural Municipality Akkal Dhami said that everyone should pay attention to the management of dignified menstruation to end the practice of Chhaupadi.

In the remote villages of Bajhang district, practice of Chhaupadi has not been eradicated yet. In most of the remote villages of the district, it is still customary to keep women in the cowshed outside their house during menstruation.

Although various awareness programmes have been conducted by the government and non-government sector to reduce the practice of Chhaupadi, it has not been fully eliminated yet.
Bishnu Pokharel, advisor to the Rural Water Resources Management Project, said that a campaign should be launched to manage the problem as there would be a lot of discrimination against women due to Chhaupadi practice.

He also said that such campaigns would not be successful unless the locals felt the need for eradicating such evil practices from the society.