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20-year-olds give access to sanitary pads betwixt pandemic

20 Year Olds Give Access To Sanitary Pads Betwixt Pandemic
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With the third wave of coronavirus expected to hit sooner than predicted, the pandemic seems to leave an unfortunate set of situations for almost all sections of the society. By pointing out that periods continue despite Covid – 19, a few students from Karnataka have initiated distributing sanitary pads to those who don’t have access to the same. Goutham, a second year Aeronautical engineering student at MVJCE, Bengaluru has started this impactful initiative, which holds value now more than ever, given the extraordinary situation such as the pandemic.

In an exclusive interview with News Karanataka, Goutham expressed his gratitude to his team; Varsha S a second year Computer Science Engineering student at PESITM, Namitha S, a second year Physiotherapy student at Nanjappa Institute of Physiotherapy, Kavya J K, a second year medical student at Subbaiah Institute of Medical and Dental Sciences, Shimoga and Harshita Manjula Rajappa, a first year Mechanical engineering student at Queens University Belfast, UK.

These 20-year-old Science kids, located in different cities in the State came together to understand a social issue. Speaking on behalf of the team, Goutham informed, “It started when Varsha and I were talking about the personal difficulties during the pandemic and the lack of awareness about menstrual hygiene among the financially backward. While going through the calendar, Varsha noticed that it was Menstrual Hygiene day on May 28 and thought it would be hard for some people to reach out to a shop to get a pack of pads by themselves during this pandemic. So she came up with the idea of gifting pads.”

Goutham asserted that while enquiring with ASHA workers about the places to distribute pads to, his team realised that there were nomads in the area who weren’t aware about the usage of sanitary pads. These nomadic herds used rags instead. Hence, this team also wanted to bring about awareness about menstrual hygiene and period products, to the underprivileged and such sections of the society. This thoughtful programme was also supported by all the families of the team members. “But like others, even they were worried about the risk of infections and were always stressing on the precautionary measures we had to take,” the aeronautical engineer confessed.

Procuring products and delivering them amidst a pandemic brings about its own set of difficulties. Goutham disclosed that his team faced issues while purchasing the orders in bulk as there was a lockdown. “It was a tough job finding the retailers. We ended up taking help from our parents who made our tasks easier. It was also difficult for us to convince others to adhere to all the safety protocols (social distancing mainly). Apart from this, the rest was fairly simple and enjoyable,” he added.

This initiative has also garnered governmental recognition. The 20-year-old boy informed he had reached out to the Project Development Officer of Gram Panchayat of Shrirampura for support. He said, “they were kind and were helpful throughout the process.” To raise funds, they had to share this initiative with their friends and families. “For now, it has reached all our friends and many of our family members. We definitely want to go bigger and reach more people in the future with more such events,” Goutham contended. 

The taboo regarding menstruation still exists in the 21st century, despite formal as well as informal education given to the people of the country. Social media, activists and others play a major role in breaking the conservationist myths that surround the idea of periods. These 20-year-olds, however, are doing their bit to help make an inclusive society. Harshita said, “I think the taboo about menstruation comes from the fact that a lot of us still believe it to be something dirty. Even in family gatherings people won’t really discuss it since it’s a hush-hush topic. When you go to chemists to get pads it’s always wrapped in black paper or newspapers just to make it look discrete. This has a lot to do with patriarchy, inferiority in females and considering periods as a limitation. Doing away with such a taboo is very important as one of the goals of our initiative is to spread awareness. We wanted more people to know about menstrual hygiene and why it is necessary to use sanitary pads or any sanitary products.” Since a lot of women in India are still dying due to infections, lack of hygiene, lack of access to clean water, toilets, and proper hygiene products, such an initiative surely gathers much deserved attention.

Progressive women and environmentalists have always pressed on the issue of sanitary pad littering and advised more sustainable means for periods such as menstrual cups. Cups produce virtually no toxic waste. One silicon cup might last up to 5 years, since they are washable and reusable. In the long run, it’s much cheaper as well. But these products are not in the vicinity of the economically backward class, to whom Harshita and her team are supplying sanitary pads. She explained, “every time you use a cup, you’ve to clean it which creates a huge mess. So lack of access to clean bathrooms, clean water can lead to infection in the end. It may do more harm than good. I read in one report where people from the low-income background were given a lot of cups but you also have to sterilize them before and after every use. Otherwise, it leads to birth infections. Sustainability boils down to affordability and access. Hence, there’s no justice in asking the poor to make such choices.” “Although it’s bad for the environment there is simply no other way. Unless we can fix this systemic inequality and ensure that everybody has access to clean water and healthcare, sanitary pads are the easiest option for them,” Harshita affirmed.

Such pragmatic understanding of the systems in which certain practices are run and trying to bring about a difference in whichever way possible is certainly commendable. These young minds revealed that the initiative wasn’t planned as such. This decision, which is temporarily named ‘A New Initiative,’ is an outcome of a spur of the moment. “As for now, we conducted this small event to make ourselves useful and help the needy in some little way amidst the pandemic. We intend to plan more programmes like this and expand into a bigger dedicated team. Turning this into an NGO is definitely on the cards but we’re not quite sure of it yet,” the team concluded.

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Siri Shekar

The author is a student reporter who is also pursuing Psychology and English Literature. A wanderer searching for faces that inspire an optimistic place about the world, she hunts for different human experiences, not just leads for a story.

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