Jamshedpur : Suhaspur Village, a small village in Musabani witnessed an awareness workshop- �Jagriti� on female health and sanitation conducted by the women students of XLRI.
Started in 2012, Jagriti is an initiative by the students of the socially conscious B-school, keeping in line with its mission of working for the greater good of society. It is conducted by CII Yi XLRI, the award winning student committee actively working for socially relevant causes in collaboration with philanthropic organisation- SEEDS.
Gynaecologist, Dr. Anushree Pandit educated a group of more than 150 women from all age groups and educational/occupational backgrounds on the importance of maintaining personal hygiene and using sanitary napkins.
The women were free to consult Dr. Pandit on any menstrual health care issues they were facing. A team of 10 girl students from XLRI interacted with the rural women, to inquire about the major hurdles they face in using sanitary napkins such as their lack of availability in the village, overpricing of the product by the shopkeeper and the gender hurdle in asking for such products from a male shopkeeper.
The team conducted a local language education program on complete menstrual health along with free distribution of a month’s supply of sanitary napkins to promote the usage of these pads over cloth and other unhygienic options.
The 150 attendees were surveyed to analyze the feasibility of forming a Self Help Group that is ready to get into a business of manufacturing and distributing low-cost sanitary napkins and the team received an enthusiastic response with the women eager to get an opportunity make a supplementary income to their husbands.
The XLRI girls are keenly working to coordinate with a group of such women and help them take up a business of setting up a manufacturing unit and a distribution network that will make the napkins available at a low cost, and through women-driven channels.