Incident Reports

Woman Dies in CHHAUPADI practice

2018-01-09

Sudurpashchim, Achham, Turmakhad, Ward 3

A woman has died in menstrual exile or ‘Chhaupadi’ at Turmakhad Rural Municipality-3 in Achham district. Police said 23-year-old Gauri Bayak (Budha) was found dead by her neighbours inside a Chhaupadi hut on Monday morning. “The cause of her death will be known after postmortem,” Deputy Superintendent of Police Dadhiram Neupane said. Villagers suspect that Gauri might have died of smoke suffocation from the fire she had lit to keep herself warm inside the Chhaupadi hut. “Gauri had made a fire inside the hut. She might have died in her sleep due to smoke inhalation,” said Ujir Bayak, a villager. Chhaupadi is a tradition where menstruating women and those in their postpartum period are forced to live in seclusion because they are deemed impure. Women observing the ritual usually live in small huts or sheds. The practice was declared a criminal offence in August last year. The government had introduced a law that stipulated a three-month jail sentence and/or Rs 3,000 fine against those convicted of Chhaupadi crime. However, enforcement of the law is sorely lacking. Despite the anti-Chhaupadi law and campaigns, the tradition is still practiced in remote parts of Achham. Dambara Upadhyay, 21, of Timilsain and Roshani Tiruwa, 15, of Gajra had also died in Chhaupadi confinements last year. छाउपडी गोठमा सुतेको अवस्थामा अछामको तुर्माखाँद गाउँपालिका ३ भैरवस्थानमा गएराती २२ वर्षीया एक युवतीको मृत्यु भएको छ । साविकको भैरवस्थान गाविस ९ लकान्द्राकी २२ वर्षीया गौरी बुढाको छाउपडी गोठमा एक्लै सुतिराखेको अवस्थामा मृत्यु भएको हो । मृतक गौरी तुर्माखाँदस्थित कालिकेश्वरी माविमा कक्षा ११ मा अध्ययनरत थिइन् । बेलुकी खाना खाएर सुतेकी गौरी बिहान अबेर सम्म नउठेपछि ढोका फोडेर हेर्दा मृत अवस्थामा फेला परेको ससुरा डम्बरबहादुर बुढाले जानकारी दिए । 'दिनभर मेलामा खर काटेर बेलुकी खाना खाएर सुतेकी बुहारी बिहान त मृत अवस्थामा भेटिइन् । ससुरा डम्बरले भने ,'बेलुकी खाना खाएर सुत्दा सम्म त केही बिसन्चो थिएन राती के भयो थाहा भएन ।' मृतकका श्रीमान वीरेन्द्र बुढा नेपाल प्रहरीमा कार्यरत छन् । वीरेन्द्र र गौरीको डेढ वर्ष पहिले विवाह भएको थियो । महिला तथा बालबालिका कार्यालयले सेभ्द चिल्ड्रेनको सहयोगमा सञ्चालन गरेको छाउपडी प्रथा निवारण परियोजनाले भैरवस्थानलाई दुई वर्ष पहिले छाउपडी गोठमुक्त घोषणा गरेको थियो । गत वर्ष तिमिल्सेनमा डम्बरा उपाध्याय र गाज्रामा रोशनी तिरुवाको छाउपडी गोठमा सुतिरहेको अवस्थामा मृत्यु भएको थियो ।
National/Online Media , Local Newspaper - Kanchanpur

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