On bringing pads out of the closet

There are certain issues that are a taboo in our society. And even though they require utmost attention, we choose to brush them under the carpet. So when I was asked to attend a function organised by the Hoshiarpur district administration to mark the installation of machines vending sanitary pads, I cringed at the mere mention of the word ‘pad’.

Despite being a qualified veterinarian, I was shying away from a topic so pertinent to women. I could imagine the discomfort women in the villages must be facing while discussing the issue of menstrual hygiene. This is a subject that is seldom broached in public spaces. I searched the pad vending machines online, saw the images, and found them quite innovative and user-friendly.

On reaching the venue, I was told that these machines would be installed in washrooms for girls so that they could have easy access to something that is their basic right after all.

This gesture resonated with me, for I still remembered the embarrassment attached to the purchase of sanitary pads when I was growing up. As a teenager, I would never go to the market to buy one myself. This duty was relegated to my mother and I would never accompany her on this specific chore to the neighbourhood market. She would ask for it in a hush-hush manner when no one was around. The precious cargo would be wrapped in a black polythene and handed over as if it was something that shouldn’t see the light of the day. Back home, the pack was hidden in a place where it couldn’t be accessed by the men folk.

Things have not changed much. The sanitary napkins are still packed in black polythene or opaque brown bags, while cigarette vendors hawk their wares with aplomb despite the mandatory anticancer warning on the pack.

I interacted with girls at the government school and they just giggled. Some of them knew about sanitary napkins and had used them; some found it unnecessary and used the conventional cloth, while others scoffed at the idea of using something so costly. Seeing one of them munching on chips in the middle of this discussion, I pointed out the irony to her. “You are eating chips and you don’t find them costly, but you find an item of basic hygiene expensive,” I said.

But I also realised that we are still hamstrung by lack of awareness about menstrual health.

At the end, a lecture on menstrual hygiene by a male deputy commissioner was another source of discomfort for all the women teachers and students.

We have a long way to go when it comes to changing old mindsets, but a little step was taken that day. These small steps will certainly turn into giant leaps. Meanwhile, we have to keep spreading the light.

SANITARY NAPKINS ARE STILL PACKED IN BLACK POLYTHENE OR OPAQUE BROWN BAGS, WHILE CIGARETTE VENDORS HAWK THEIR WARES WITH APLOMB DESPITE THE MANDATORY ANTICANCER WARNING ON THE PACK