Asmita: Project for Menstrual Health Management and Sanitary Napkins

Asmita a unique concept for menstrual health management and sanitary napkins

Asmita....mazhaa hakk mazhaa gaurav"....

Asmita, the unique identity of a woman, Asmita the dignity of a woman....a deep rooted thought which reflects on what a woman is entitled for. Asmita, a woman's pride, her rights and glory. No wonder this name was chosen as a brand name for the launch of a product associated with woman's personal hygiene-Asmita sanitary napkins by the Hon'ble Minister Rural Development and also by the Secretary,RDD, Government of Maharashtra.

In society, menstruation and the menstrual cycle of a woman have different connotations, religious, traditional and otherwise. Engulfed between the social and personal milieu it is rarely a matter of serious discussion. While television advertisements of different companies have made people aware of the need for hygienic products still purchase of sanitary napkins is a hush hush topic. It is also something which women like to keep to themselves due to shyness or certain taboos associated with the same.
While urban women are aware, have more access and to a large extent are also able to afford use of sanitary napkins, the rural counterparts have to grapple with accessibility, affordability, availability of good quality sanitary napkins. Added to it is the lack of awareness.
The Minister for Rural Development, Government of Maharashtra, Ms.Pankaja Munde therefore took a very welcome step when she put forth the idea of making available, affordable good quality sanitary napkins in the village itself.
A scheme was worked out by the Department under the meticulous guidance of the Secretary Rural Development, Aseem Gupta. Under it , the Department floated a tender for procuring the lowest rate for supply of 3 types of sanitary napkins- 240 mm, 280 mm for women and 240 mm thickness, for use girls in the age group 11 to 19 years studying in Zilla Parishad schools. The napkins are tri-fold with wings along with a disposable pouch. The idea was to provide cheaper sanitary napkins but with the same superior quality comparable to those available in the market in a price range of Rs.60 and Rs.80/- for 8 napkins.
After following detailed government procedures a tender was floated to procure rates for manufacturing and the lowest quote for a pack of 8 napkins complying to quality standards was finalised
Once the rate for sanitary napkins was fixed through open tender process, they were to be procured and marketed by women of self-help groups of Maharashtra State Rural Livelihoods Mission ( MSRLM) by adding on Rs.5/- as commission for marketing so as to provide another means for livelihood to them by way of trading.
MSRLM as most of us are aware is a society under the Department of Rural development, Government of India and the State Government of Maharashtra working for empowerment of women in rural areas.
A three pronged strategy is adapted to eliminate their poverty and backwardness by way of enhancing their productivity, providing means for additional livelihoods to them which are allied to agriculture like poultry, goatery and by skilling them for employment or self-employment. The motive of the government is to ensure that each rural household should be able to earn at least Rs.1 lakh by way of annual household income. Till date over 2 lakh SHGs of women have been created and over 5 lakh households have been transformed due to provision of varied livelihood options to them. Trading and selling of sanitary napkins has now been added as another option for livelihood to SHG women.
What is even more important is that all activities to be undertaken for implementation of the scheme are technology enabled and have been developed with great application of mind and are accessible only by way of mobile app. The complete transaction is online without human interface.
The first step in this direction was creation of an app whereby SHG women could register themselves as traders. Only those SHGs who are registered on the NRLM portal, have an NIC code and follow Dashasutri, the ten principles of NRLM can be registered. The ten principles include regular meetings, savings, internal lending, regular repayment of loans, writing books of accounts, taking care of their health, nutrition, sanitation, access to education, take support of all government schemes, participating in panchayat raj institutions and indulging in sustainable livelihoods. Registration can be done by a simple process after downloading the Asmita app from the Google play store. Once they have downloaded the Asmita app they can register themselves by getting an OTP. They will be provided a unique id code on registration. They then become eligible to place orders for selling sanitary napkins but before that they have to recharge the wallet for placing of orders. This can be done by visiting the Aaple Sarkar Sewa Kendra and taking support of the Kendra chaalak. A minimum amount of Rs.3000/- has to be recharged since orders can be placed in multiples of 140 packs. Once the wallet is recharged and the amount is reflected in it the SHGs can place order for procuring sanitary napkins, the amount for the order will be deducted from the wallet and go into the pool account created by Yes Bank. On confirmation of receipt of the amount by way of sms, the manufacturer will accept the order and direct his taluka representative to hand over the contingent to the SHG who can pick up the product from the taluka godown.
On confirmation of receipt of the product by the SHG via app the amount from Yes Bank pool account is debited into the manufacturer's account. The transaction is now complete and the lady is entitled to sell the product on MRP. It is compulsory that the SHG registers sale of every pack on the app to avoid misuse. Asmita napkins are available to all women at the rate of Rs. 25 for 240 mm and at the rate of Rs.29 for 280 mm. Girls in the age group11 and 19 in Zilla Parishad schools will be provided sanitary napkins at the rate of Rs.5/- The remaining amount will be borne as subsidy by the Rural Development Department.
A four pronged strategy to improve awareness regarding menstrual health and the use of sanitary napkins and also make it affordable, accessible and available is the main thrust of the scheme.
Statistics reveal that only 17% of women use sanitary napkins during menstruation. The remaining use cloth or other modes which maybe unhygienic and unhealthy making them vulnerable to uterine diseases and cervical cancer. Increasing awareness is therefore the first aspect which the scheme hopes to do by way of wide publicity.
The movie "Padman" dealing with this sensitive subject was released recently and would be used to create awareness apart from effective ad campaigns. But the silver lining are the other three “A”s- Afforadbility. Accessibility and availability. Standardised good quality sanitary napkins will now be available at every village at an affordable rate and easily accessible for purchase with women SHGs cutting out shyness normally experienced while making purchase.
The Asmita scheme was launched on 8th March 2018 by Shri. Devendra Fadnavis, the Hon'ble Chief Minister of Maharashtra in the presence of Ms.Pankaja Munde, Honble Minister for Rural Development and the Honourable Minister of State for Rural Development, Shri. Dadaji Bhuse along with the famous film actor and now a proud Padman Akshay Kumar.
A tableau displaying the product along with a team is moving around in districts creating awareness in the hope that the percentage of use of sanitary napkins will go up from 17 to 70 within a year.
While the napkins have been subsidised there may be some women who still do not have the means to finance themselves and for such women the government has come out with Asmita Fund wherein benevolent donors can annually sponsor sanitary napkins for a girl or woman at a cost of Rs.182 only. Donations for the same can only be made online on web portal
http://mahaasmita.mahaonline.gov.in

Our honourable Chief Minister, Shri.Devendra Fadnavis and our Honourable Minister Smt.Pankaja Munde have set examples by doing so.

Let's also contribute to this worthy cause.

The ideals are lofty and so are the dreams which emphasize on health and hygiene for the woman.
On the sidelines are others discussing the issue of disposal of used sanitary napkins. A lot of comments are being made about the environmental hazards which maybe caused due to used sanitary napkins. . Efforts are already being made by providing incinerators and giving directions to Gram Panchayats for purchase and installation.
What needs greater thought is our change in attitude. All of us our aware of the common use of baby and adult diapers which are equally harmful to the environment perhaps more due to their size and numbers used. Monthly change of toothbrushes, shaving sticks etc. in metros may possibly cause more harm as their decomposition is indefinite. However no objections are raised to their use. Hackles are raised against use of a product convenient to women. The issue of environmental protection is not only complicated but also mindboggling and certainly needs attention. However the use and disposal of sanitary napkins by women is just one aspect. Ways and means for biodegradable options and products can be worked out. For the present let unaware women and girls get initiated into menstrual health management, understand the use of sanitary napkins and start using them.