Sanitary pad vending machine in Hirakhand Express

Bhubaneswar-Jagadalpur Hirakhand Express, which passes through Maoist-hit tribal areas of Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, today became the second train after Mumbai-Delhi Rajdhani Express to have an onboard sanitary pad vending machine.

The step was in line with the call given by Railway Minister Piyush Goyal to provide facilities in interior areas and regions at par with those provided at large stations and in premium trains, an East Coast Railway (ECoR) official said.

After free Wi-Fi in tribal areas of Chhattisgarh and Odisha, the East Coast Railway Womens Welfare Organisation (ECoRWWO) has now provided Sanitary Napkin Vending Machine on this train which is hugely popular and is a lifeline of thousands of passengers in tribal and interior areas of Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, he said.

It has been done for the convenience of women passengers as part of promoting and securing womens well-being and health. Hirakhand Express became the first train in this region with such a machine.

ECoRWWO president Madhulika Singh inaugurated the machine in the train in presence of senior officials and dignitaries. The slim and sleek vending machine dispenses the sanitary napkin by putting in a Rs 5 coin. It has a capacity of 25 napkins. These will be refilled from time to time.

Inaugurating the machine, Singh said the facility would be extended to other trains for the convenience of women passengers.

Earlier, a similar sanitary napkin vending machine was installed in Mumbai-New Delhi Rajdhani Express some time back.

The Hirakhand Express passes through Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh covering interior and tribal dominated parts of these states.

Earlier, Sanitary Napkin Vending Machines were installed by East Coast Railway Womens Welfare Organisation (ECoRWWO) at Bhubaneswar, Puri, Sambalpur, Visakhapatnam and Vizianagaram railway stations under the jurisdiction of East Coast Railway.