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📢 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence: It’s Time to ACT — On and Offline

From 25 November to 10 December, people around the world come together to raise their voices against Gender-Based Violence (GBV). This year’s focus for reminds us that violence isn’t only physical, it can happen in our DMs, comments, feeds and every corner of the digital world. There is for online abuse.

🔎 Why this matters: According to the World Health Organisation, nearly 1 in 3 women (about 840 million) globally will experience physical and/or sexual violence by a partner or someone else at some point in their life. In the past 12 months alone, around 316 million women aged 15 or older suffered violence from an intimate partner. Further, according to UN Women, between 16-58% of women and girls face digital violence and about 90-95% of deep fakes circulating are of women.

⚠️ What this means: Behind each statistic is a real person, a woman, a girl, a friend, a family member, whose life may be affected by violence. GBV isn’t just a personal issue; it’s a global crisis rooted in inequality, silence and shame.

💬 What can we do:
👉🏽 Believe and support survivors. Online abuse is real abuse.
👉🏽 Call out harmful behaviour even if it’s “just a comment.”
👉🏽 Educate yourself and others about consent, respect and digital safety.
👉🏽 Report, block and document online harassment.
👉🏽 Advocate for accountability from institutions and tech platforms.
👉🏽 Create safe spaces, in our homes, communities and online group chats.

Ending GBV is everyone’s responsibility. Together, let’s build a world where women and girls can live, speak, and connect, online and offline, with dignity, respect and freedom.

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Karnataka has become the first Indian state to grant one day of paid menstrual leave per month to women in both the public and private sectors.

Karnataka’s move acknowledges what science and lived experience have always shown: Menstruation can bring real physical and mental challenges that can affect productivity and well-being.

💬 “It’s a step toward a more humane, understanding, and inclusive workplace,” said Chief Minister Siddaramaiah when announcing the Menstrual Leave Policy 2025.

Odisha and Bihar offer menstrual leave to government employees, while Kerala has introduced a similar provision for students and staff in universities.

Several companies were already ahead of the curve:
🌸 Zomato introduced paid period leave in 2020.
🌸 Swiggy, Larsen & Toubro, Byju’s, and Gozoop also have similar internal policies, recognising the importance of menstrual health in retaining and empowering women employees.

It is important to remember that period leave is not a perk, it is a necessity for women who need it. A third of women experience severe pain known as dysmenorrhea (Spanish Gynaecology and Obstetrics Society), caused due to conditions such as endometriosis and uterine fibrosis.

💬 Activist Brinda Adige said “This is a commendable step toward recognising the genuine health needs of women in the workplace.”

While this policy is step in the right direction, wee must not forget the reality of millions of women across India. Menstruation is still surrounded by stigma, shame, and misinformation. Access to affordable and hygienic menstrual products is limited, and many young girls miss school each month because of inadequate facilities and social taboos.

A policy like this is important, but it must be matched with broader efforts: Menstrual education, affordability of sanitary products, and dismantling of cultural myths that continue to isolate women.

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