CHENNAI: Chennai corporation is to supply free sanitary napkins for corporation school students of classes VI-XII. Under the initiative ‘Kanniyam’, to promote menstrual hygiene management in corporation schools, Rs 4.5 crore has been allocated under the Nirbhaya Fund.
Each student who requires sanitary napkins, will be provided with 10 napkins every month under the scheme. The move is expected to benefit over 20,000 students of corporation’s schools’ total strength of 25,474 girls in classes VI-XII.
“Menstruating students may collect up to 10 sanitary napkins each from their teachers every month. There will also be additional boxes in the toilet blocks for those who may need immediate access to them,” said a corporation official. The school toilets will have five packs (50 sanitary napkins) for emergencies.
Apart from looking to promote menstrual hygiene and reproductive health, the initiative also looks to create awareness on safe disposal practices. While the pads will be provided in eco-friendly pouches to the students, labelled oxo-biodegradable bags will be available at the toilet blocks to safely dispose of used napkins. Since this initiative is also expected to throw up a considerable waste load, an estimated 26.5 lakh pads a year, a safe and systematic disposal mechanism will be in place, said officials.
To oversee the process of supplying and disposing of sanitary napkins, 16 women personnel- one for every 10 schools will be deployed and they will report to the corporation education department. The city corporation has now floated tenders for this initiative and the initiative will start once tender is finalised.
According to corporation officials, it has been strictly specified that the napkins should be of the highest quality to prevent any leakages or discomfort for a minimum of six hours and to follow specifications under the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS).
The corporation has 281 schools of which 159 are middle, high and higher secondary schools and the initiative also involves an awareness component that focuses on understanding changes during puberty, knowing the biology around menstruation, normalising menstruation and conquering myth and misconceptions, breaking silence around it and dealing with pain and nutrition associated with menstruation.