Govt: no proposal under consideration for providing menstrual leaves

There is no proposal under the consideration of the government to make provision for paid menstrual leave mandatory for all workplaces, Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani informed Lok Sabha on Friday.

She was replying to a question by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor.

In her written reply in Lok Sabha, Irani said, "At present, there is no proposal under consideration of the Government to make provision for paid menstrual leave mandatory for all workplaces".

"Menstruation is a physiological phenomenon among women and only a small proportion of women/ girls suffer from severe dysmenorrhea or similar complaints; and most of these cases are manageable by medication," Irani said in her reply.

The minister added that various types of leave are available to a female government employee under the Central Civil Services (Leave) Rules, 1972 in the form of earned leave, half-pay leave, extraordinary leave, child care leave, commuted leave, maternity leave, leave on medical certificate, leave not due, etc.