CHENNAI: To create awareness about menstrual hygiene and health, a rally with hundreds of participants was held in Besant Nagar, on Saturday. The Centre for Women's Development and Research (CWDR) and the ‘Snehidhi adolescent girls' network organised the rally at Besant Nagar Beach to mark Menstrual Hygiene Day. Nearly 200 girls and youth participated in the wee hours on Saturday to demand their right to dignified menstrual health and hygiene.

“Due to recent government restrictions on public demonstrations—particularly gender rights—the rally was granted permission only between 5 am and 7 am. But, despite this inconvenient timing, the beach came alive with energetic slogans, placards, and the unified voices of young girls calling for better menstrual hygiene education, access to affordable products, and adolescent-friendly health services,” said a CWDR member.

Also, participants highlighted the ongoing challenges faced by adolescent girls, especially in low-income communities, where lack of information, stigma, and poor sanitation infrastructure continue to affect menstrual health.

The rally shed light on the urgent need to integrate Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM) into school curricula and public health programmes.