Sanitary Pad Vending Machines, Incinerators To Be Installed At Women’s Hostels On Campuses 

Hyderabad: The UGC has directed all universities to install sanitary napkin vending machines and incinerators on the premises of girls and women’s hostels as part of the Swachh Bharath Mission.

In an effort to promote proper disposal of menstrual waste, the UGC has directed all universities to encourage women to use eco-friendly incinerators and to promote research for a biodegradable alternative as improper disposal of napkins damages ecology. With a view to promote menstrual health of women and adolescent girls by ensuring availability of quality sanitary napkins, the Haryana Government has install automated sanitary napkin vending machine and incinerators in all government colleges in the state in January this year.

A Central public sector unit has introduced ‘Sanitary Napkin Vending Machines and incinerators’.

The estimated cost of the machinery is around Rs50,000 and the expenditure to install the machinery can be directly booked under the Solid Waste Management component of the Swachh Bharat Mission, the notice read.

A professor at the English and Foreign Languages University said, ''This idea of installation of Sanitary Napkin Vending Machines and Incinerators within the premises of Women's Hostels as part of Swatch Bharath Mission is good provided it's maintained properly but it also depends on the quality of napkins the vending machines will provide."

She adds, ''Especially we are not sure of the menstrual hygiene habits of lower cadre employees. There should be regular training and the napkins should be of good quality."

An inmate at the women's hostel on OU campu said, "It is a very helpful step as sometimes we get periods unexpectedly."

In view of social taboo associated with sanitary napkins, a majority of the girls or women feel embarrassed and hesitate to go to the commonly known, manned and often crowded conventional or medical or general stores for sanitary napkins resulting in unsafe practices and use of unhygienic materials during the menstrual period.

Disposal of used sanitary napkins has also been a very common problem everywhere. Girls do not like to carry their used sanitary napkins or pads to a bin in front of family and friends and incinerators would be the best solution," says an official requesting anonymity.