Chandigarh
4 May 2019
DIVYA AZAD
Cricketer Suresh Raina and wife Priyanka Chaudhary Raina’s Gracia Raina Foundation recently held a reproductive health and mental well-being workshop for incarcerated women of Model Jail, Chandigarh today.
A part of the foundation’s #EveryMother programme, it was attended by 50 women, led by Priyanka and presented by Dr Rupinder Kaur, gynaecologist and Dr. Tanvi Seth, counselling psychologist, Fortis Hospitals, Mohali. Gracing the event were Dr. O.P Mishra, IPS/ IG Prisons, sessions judge Balbir Singh, and Dr. Upneet Lalli, Deputy Director, Institute of Correctional Administration.
“On behalf of Department of Prisons and Correctional Administration, Chandigarh, I would like to thank Gracia Raina Foundation for organizing a very meaningful interactive workshop on reproductive health and mental well-being for female inmates of Model Jail, Chandigarh. I am sure this interaction will help the inmates in overcoming stress while staying in the Prison and improving their overall health,” Dr. Mishra concluded.
Women’s health is crucial and it doesn’t matter where she lives in, pointed out Dr. Lalli. “Her rights to healthcare facilities remain intact,” she said and added that women’s reproductive & mental health has remained an area of concern especially when it came to prisons, but there have been constant efforts towards improving the current situation.
“We are indeed hopeful with the collaboration established with Gracia Raina foundation to address this issue and take suggestive measures based on the study for improving the life of women in custody. The first workshop in Karnal prison , received a very positive feedback from the inmates and staff . I hope that we can take the programme forward to other prisons as well,” she was quoted as saying.
Prisons challenge a woman’s mental and physical health. They live in confined spaces, distanced from loved ones and with little to no hope for future relationships. Sanitation continues to be a major issue in most correctional facilities, therefore exposing them to greater health risks. Which is why, GRF held its EveryMother workshop to assist incarcerated women with a platform where they would gain and share knowledge about their varied challenges.
The visiting health experts covered a multitude of topics such as nutrition, menstrual health and menopause, pregnancy and family planning, breast and cervical cancer, and self-care with body hygiene.
So far, EveryMother has impacted mothers living in the cities of Delhi and Uttar Pradesh. It’s a pan India programme that’ll soon reach multiple states.
