J&K women follow ‘Padman’ idea to make lowcost sanitary pads

JAMMU: Arunachalam Muruganantham would not have imagined his invention would transcend geographic boundaries: from Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu to Ghagwal in Jammu & Kashmir.

Muruganantham was obsessed with making the perfect sanitary pad for his wife. The obsession led him to invent a low-cost sanitary pad-making machine, earning him the title of a social entrepreneur in the process.

His invention is now a motivation for women in Ghagwal, a medium size village in Samba district. The women in the village have started making low-cost sanitary pads with assistance from the Department of Rural Development under its ‘Umeed’ scheme, which is aimed at empowering women in rural areas.

The State Rural Livelihood Mission has set up a low-cost pad-making unit in the village and women from self-help groups (SHGS) are making sanitary pads there and also marketing their product.

The unit was inaugurated on Thursday by minister for rural development Abdul Haq Khan and minister of state for education Priya Sethi.

With an aim to ensure menstrual hygiene, the women are trying to keep the cost of the sanitary pads less than a third of the price of commercially available pads. Doing this, is helping them secure their livelihood.

Seven SHGS members from Ghaghwal were trained at Muruganantham’s padmaking facility in Coimbatore. The machines, too, were acquired from there.

Interestingly, setting up such units require nominal investments, the ministers were informed by people behind the project.