KOCHI: The Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT), which recently became the first university in the country to grant menstrual leave to students, is now gearing up to launch the ‘Green the Red’ campaign. This campaign aims to raise awareness about various aspects of menstruation and related topics.
'Green the Red' campaign is intended to create awareness among women of all ages on menstruation, menstrual hygiene, menopause and period-related issues, Namitha George, the chairperson of the CUSAT students union said. “In collaboration with the Education for Good Foundation, an NGO based in Kochi, we will be launching this campaign in July 2023. The final details are being discussed, and the official date will be announced soon,” she added.
The campaign will span two days, with expert-led sessions on the first day covering the aforementioned topics. On the second day, sustainable menstrual products such as menstrual cups and eco-friendly sanitary napkins will be distributed to the students and staff.
“Through this campaign, our goal is to normalise discussions around periods and introduce various menstrual products to female students,” Namitha explained. The CUSAT Students Union is organising the campaign and will conduct a survey beforehand to gauge the majority’s preference for menstrual products.
Meanwhile, the menstrual leave policy introduced by the university has received positive feedback from the students. Under this policy, female students are granted an additional leave benefit of 2% every semester.”Almost every female student is utilizing the leave.
These leaves function similarly to casual leaves, with the only difference being that girls have an additional leave benefit of two per cent. Now, female students require only 73% attendance to be eligible to appear for semester exams. Almost every female student has been availing the leave since January,” Namitha shared. The decision to implement the 2% menstrual leave was made in January 2023 following protests by the student union.