The act of breastfeeding in public is a phenomenon that is subject to myriad forms of overt or subversive regulation and control in society today. It may be rendered visible or invisible, sexualized or naturalized and revered or declared disruptive. The spatial practices of breastfeeding in public urban spaces has in recent times especially, become a matter of a great contention, given the prevalence of stigmas and taboos, coupled with associated discrimination and ill-treatment.
There exists a cultural discomfort with women nursing their infants in public, often being grounded in notions of privacy. In this scenario, it is imperative that women have access to nursing facilities within larger urban spaces, which are clean and comfortable. This need has sparked demands for improved infrastructural support, to enable women to breastfeed their infants easily, as they navigate public spaces in their daily lives.
Within this context, the Delhi High Court has issued a directive to the central and local government in response to a PIL (public interest litigation), as well as the local authorities (civic bodies, land-owning agencies etc.), to devise a plan for the provision of separate rooms in public places and buildings for the mothers. The absence of such facilities amounts to a violation of the women’s right to privacy and the child’s dignity of life.
Such facilities are being put into place not just outside India, but within the country as well.Kochi is one such example. This month, breastfeeding pods were opened in four metro stations in the city, so that these could serve their 700 women employees as well as the mothers waiting for their trains. These pods are 4 ft * 4ft fibre-reinforced plastic cubicles and include a light, fan, bench seat, in-use locks for privacy and other basic facilities like hand sanitizers and charging point.
Source: Kochi Metro/Facebook
Designed by a wellness start-up called “I love 9 months”, these pods cost INR 1.5 lakhs and are equipped with information about breastfeeding. The mothers will also be able to contact the virtual support team from the wellness startup for reporting issues or feedback. These breastfeeding pods have been funded by the CSR (corporate social responsibility) initiatives of CIMAR Hospitals.
Based on feedback, more of these breastfeeding pods will be installed. The startup is also in discussions with the Indian Railways to set up breastfeeding pods across major stations from Kanyakumari to Thissur. A search for a uniform sponsor is currently underway.
“I love 9 months” is an all-women led startup that was incubated as part of the Kerala Startup Mission. This startup has also designed larger “lactation pods” for working mothers. These pods come equipped with a mini-fridge to store the breast milk and breast pumps. The first set of these lactation pods were inaugurated at Technopark in Thiruvananthapuram, home to IT companies.
The United States of America legalized breastfeeding in public only in 2018. This has been a society that has historically been hostile to mothers nursing in public. However, it is interesting to note that the stigma of breastfeeding is relatively new in India. With the advent of globalization and the adoption of Western attire and attitudes, including increasing sexualization of the woman’s body, breastfeeding mothers are more likely to be stared at or shamed today, than before the 1980s.
People in India are advocating for the acceptance of breastfeeding in public as well. However, until mindsets change, such initiatives are imperative to ease the conditions in public spaces for breastfeeding mothers and need to be replicated at a larger and more widespread scale throughout the country. The Kochi Metro’s initiative is an example of utilising public-private collaboration to make urban spaces more inclusive.
India Outbound
February 22, 2019
source https://indiaoutbound.org/making-breastfeeding-convenient-in-urban-spaces/
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