Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): State Rural Livelihood Mission (SRLM) is going to provide reusable pads made from banana fibre at its Aajeevika Mart located at Bhopal Haat from June this year. The users have claimed that the eco-friendly sanitary napkins helped to reduce their menstrual cramp, heavy blood flow, rashes and smell. However, research is still underway.
To spread awareness and promote sustainable menstrual hygiene practices, the mission has trained more than 100 rural women in production, distribution and sales of innovative reusable sanitary napkins in collaboration with Saukhyam under One District, One Product initiative.
“The reusable sanitary pad has a proven track record of benefits in the fields of health and environment, provided effort is taken to make it a part of our daily lives. We look forward to these benefits reaching lakhs of women in the times to come,” said additional CEO of SRLM, Sanjeev Sinha.
He said that at present there is one factory in Burhanpur district, which produces the reusable pad due to plenty of banana trees there. They are planning to start its sale in Dhar, Khargone, Jhabua and other districts.
Anju Bist, Managing Director of Saukhyam Reusable Pads, also known as Pad Woman of India, emphasised on the need for sustainable menstrual hygiene in Madhya Pradesh. “It is the first ISO certified reusable sanitary pad made of banana fibre in India. It signals a growing recognition of need for sustainable menstrual hygiene products,” she said.
Lasting up to three years, they have gained popularity among more than 500,000 women in India and abroad, she added.
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