Meet to discuss issue of menstrual hygiene

How manufacturing of low-cost sanitary napkins at village level could generate employment opportunities for women would be the focus of a meet of woman village heads, being organised by the drinking water and sanitation ministry.
Minister for Drinking Water and Sanitation Uma Bharti said today that the meet would be held in Lucknow on International Women's Day on March 8.
Addressing a press conference here, she said the meet, which is likely to be attended by 10,000 to 15,000 village heads, would focus on how to use the power of women to make various initiatives of the ministry successful.
"In the meet we will discuss on the issues of menstrual hygiene and how self-help groups can be formed in villages so that village women can manufacture low-cost sanitary napkins which they can sell as well as use. The solid and liquid waste management, which is a part of open defecation-free scheme, would also generate employment in villages," Bharti said.

Bharti, who earlier held discussion with Skill Development Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on training village women to make low-cost sanitary napkins, said that linking menstrual hygiene to the skill development scheme would enable women to earn livelihood in villages.
"It would also stop villagers from migrating to cities for jobs," she said.
Bharti said that for the success of these schemes, her ministry needed the support of state governments.