Nepal, July 15 -- Nepali women unnecessarily lose their lives in the name of traditions. The most notorious of these is Chhaupadi, a deeply entrenched tradition in western Nepal that forces menstruating women to live in chhau goths (menstrual sheds), cattle sheds, or separate huts, considering them 'impure'. Even though the Supreme Court outlawed the system in 2005 and a law criminalised it in 2017, imposing a three-month prison sentence and a fine of Rs3,000 or both on the offenders, Chhaupadi remains rampant. It continues to claim the lives of Nepali women, exposing the inefficacy of years of efforts to uproot it.

Since 2005, at least 20 women have died in different districts of Sudurpaschim Province-14 in Achham, two in Doti, three in...