Chhaupadi promotes violence against women by isolating them, making them vulnerable to abuse, and reinforcing inequality by labelling them as impure during menstruation. On the occasion of November 25th — International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women — we want to call for this issue not to be forgotten

Unfortunately, compiling a complete list of the names of all women who have died due to the practice of chhaupadi in Nepal is a challenging task, as there is no publicly available comprehensive data. Many of these deaths occur in remote areas of Nepal and often go unreported, or the victims’ names are not recorded due to a lack of official reports. Also because families may not want to report such incidents for fear of social shame. Frequently, these deaths are not directly linked to chhaupadi because the causes, such as pneumonia or hypothermia, manifest days after their menstrual exile ends.

The practice of chhaupadi was banned by Nepal’s Supreme Court in 2005 and criminalized in 2017, but enforcement of the law remains poor, particularly in rural areas. Since then, several deaths of women and girls have been reported, mostly caused by suffocation (from lighting fires in confined spaces to stay warm), hypothermia, and animal attacks while staying in the small huts designated for chhaupadi.

At the end, we share a video recorded this year by our friend Menuka Dhungana, journalist and anti-chhaupadi activist, showing how small and suffocating these huts can be.

Among the reported victims are:

• Anita Chaud (16 years old): Bitten, in August 2023, by a venomous snake a Tuesday night, and died the next day while banished to a chhaupadi hut.
• Parbati Bogati (21 years old): Died on February 2, 2019, in Sanphebagar, Achham, due to suffocation after lighting a fire to stay warm in her hut.
• Parbati Budha (18 years old): Died in Thurmakhand while sleeping in a hut with her friend Radhika.
• Parbati Budha Rawat (21 years old): Died from smoke inhalation after lighting a fire in her stone and mud hut.
• Amba Bohara (35 years old) and her sons (9 and 12 years old): Died from suffocation in a windowless hut while sleeping.
• Gauri Budha (22 years old): A student married to a police officer who died of suffocation in a hut.
• Roshani Tiruwa (15 years old): Died in December 2016 under similar circumstances; her mother escaped the hut that same night and saved herself.
• Dambara Upadhyay: Died in November 2016; her family said she refused to stay home out of fear of breaking traditional rules.
• Sarmila Bhul (15 years old): Died in Dailekh in 2013 while practicing chhaupadi. An autopsy was not conducted due to a lack of medical resources.
  

These stories represent just a fraction of the deaths caused by chhaupadi. According to Nepal’s National Human Rights Commission, at least 15 women and girls died from chhaupadi in the Achham and Dailekh regions between 2005 and 2019, with the actual number believed to be higher.

Beyond Deaths: Sexual Assaults

Many women and girls also face sexual violence while practising chhaupadi. Social stigma prevents them from reporting these abuses, as it could render them “unworthy” of marriage. The most recent known assault occurred in November 2024 in Binayak, a municipality where the Rato Baltin project has recently started working.

How to Help

These girls need help, and our association needs your support to raise funds, reach more villages, distribute menstrual cups, and help eradicate this dangerous tradition.

Donate via our migranodearena platform and help us continue this work.

Thank you so much,
Clara García i Ortés
Founder of the Rato Baltin project