Sutak is observed during the time, when a child is born. The family members of the new born observe a period of Sutak for ten days. They restrict themselves from going to temples and attending any ceremonies. The mother of the child is restrained to go in the kitchen and the newborn is not brought outside of the home.

Sutak is observed during the time, when a child is born. The family members of the new born observe a period of Sutak for ten days. They restrict themselves from going to temples and attending any ceremonies. The mother of the child is restrained to go in the kitchen and the newborn is not brought outside of the home. 
The concept of Sutak is based with the context of Ritual Purity in the Vedic tradition. At its heart, there is a belief that humans exist in a natural state of uncleanliness, and this 'uncleanness' is not just physical, but spiritual as well. However, any emanation from the body is considered unclean. Association with the divine requires purification at all levels. Within Hinduism, Ritual Purity is understood to occur at many hierarchies.‪The Gods (and deities) exist at a different level of purity. The Priests who tend to them must exist at a similar level of purity. For the Priest, this purity is achieved by the thrice daily recitation of the Sandhya Vandanam (ie, the Gayatri). This allows the Priest to now associate with the deities. However, if he contacts anything (or anyone) 'unclean', he must repeat the process. Any emanation from the body is unclean. By the same logic hair & nair clippings are also considered unclean, once they're separated from your body. A menstruating woman is thus considered 'ritually unclean', due to active emanation from her body. Similarly a Priest with an oozing wound (or a runny nose) is ritually unclean.
Sutak describes a temporary state of being where ritual purification is not possible, for any number of reasons. A woman who has given birth needs time to heal, and due to the continuing secretions from her body, cannot undergo ritual purification. Traditionally, the period of Sutak is ten days for Brahmins, twelve for Kshatriyas, sixteen to twenty days for Vaishyas and thirty days for Shudras. As in the medieval times, women of Shudra caste had to do a lot of physical hard work in the fields and homes of upper caste people. Their bodies didn’t remain in great shape due to the physical stress and poverty. This was the reason that their Sutak period was the longest, so that their bodies completely recover to sustain their daily chores. The Sutak period of other castes was also relative to their work nature. Moreover, the newborn child is very sensitive and fragile to infections. Its body is not immune to antigens and its immunity develops slowly with time. It could catch infections from the people around it. That’s why, Sutak forbids touching or going near the newborn for ten to thirty days!! Jai ShivaShakti! Jai Nataraja!!