Under stress after having her first period, 14-year-old dies by suicide in Mumbai

“During the preliminary inquiry, her relatives said the girl had a painful experience recently after having her first menstrual period. She was disturbed and was under mental stress over it. Hence, she may have ended her life over it,” said a police officer.

The police said there was no foul play but are probing the matter from all angles.

“We will be speaking to the teenager’s friends to know more about her depression and also scan through her recent online activities to get an idea about all the things she was curious about,” said another police officer.

The police conducted the panchnama and sent her body for postmortem. After completing the formalities, the body would be handed over to the family on Wednesday. They have registered an accidental death report and are further probing the matter.

A social activist said the experience of menstruation for young girls is sometimes harder due to inconsistent access to education on menstrual health and puberty.

‘It’s taboo to bring up periods’

Nishant Bangera of NGO Muse Foundation, which works towards creating awareness regarding menstrual health, said the death of the girl is a direct result of the deep-rooted shame and lack of awareness about periods.

“Even in the 21st century, periods are not a topic covered in many schools and colleges. It’s taboo to bring up the topic or ask questions about periods in our families. It’s a fault of the entire society, including the state, that fails to normalise period education,” Bangera said.

He said the lack of period awareness is not only amidst a specific class. “There are principals of colleges in Mumbai who tell us not to talk about periods with students. Period awareness is class and gender-agnostic. It is the government’s lack of policies and intent that has led to a situation for period taboos to still exist in our society,” Bangera said.

There must be a holistic plan that targets menstrual education to normalise period conversations. “Only when we start talking about it normally with everyone including all genders, can there be any change,” he added.