Two people were killed in Achham after a boulder fell on a temporary menstrual shelter on Thursday night, police said. The incident occurred in Churekholi tole, Serapani, ward 8 of Panchadewal Binayak Municipality.

Deputy Superintendent of Police Om Prakash Khanal, chief of District Police Office, Achham, said 28-year-old Nim Khanal and seven-year-old Kabita Bhandari died while sleeping in a tarp in the field. The mother of the deceased girl, 36-year-old Ratnakala Bhandari, sustained serious head injuries and was taken to Surkhet for treatment.

“Police have arrived at the scene. Both women were menstruating and had taken the child with them under the tarp,” DSP Khanal said. “The village has no menstrual shed. If women are being forced to stay under tarps during menstruation, we will pursue legal action.”

In Achham, the demolition of menstrual huts has forced women to take shelter under temporary tarps or in barns. Since 2006, 19 women and girls in the district have died while staying in such makeshift shelters.