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Indian Express
6 hours ago
- General
- Indian Express
From taboos to training: How tribal women in remote village are changing ideas about menstrual hygiene
In a poor, tribal village of Chaurakund in Dharni taluka, Amravati district, a group of women stitch together a hygienic future. Society here doesn't not talk openly about menstrual hygiene. Last year, the Integrated Tribal Development Project (ITDP) Dharni, under the Maharashtra tribal development department, organised an awareness workshop called 'Empowerment through menstrual hygiene and skill training'. It was attended by nearly 70 adolescent girls and women who live in the taluka's villages and the forests of Kokmar, Chopan, Chaurakund, Tangda and Malur. Building an understanding of menstrual hygiene among the tribal population and promoting sustainable menstrual habits was Phase I of a larger vision. On May 28, the International Menstrual Hygiene Day 2025, Phase II kicked off. It was inaugurated by Priyamvada Mahaddalkar, assistant collector and project officer, ITDP, Dharni. The tribal women and officials revisited and reviewed the outcome of Phase 1, especially with the former giving feedback about the reusable pads that they had been given last year. 'The traditional market-bought sanitary pads, which are of one-time use, have an affordability angle to it. The women are not able to afford it on a long-term basis. We thought that the reusable, washable product was a way for us to promote sustainable menstrual hygiene in the long run. The good part about this training was that it focused a lot on the awareness aspects of menstrual hygiene,' says Mahaddalkar. 'The feedback from the women was encouraging and showed a willingness to continue using the pads and learning the skills of making reusable sanitary pads,' she adds. Over two days, the women and the officials worked together on the training and production, with the women learning the entire process of making reusable sanitary pads. Since then, 15 women have been coming in as two trainers – and a local man who has been trained – take them through ways of cutting fabric, shaping pads and turning and stitching and buttoning. The project seeks to train and educate women about the benefits of washable cloth pads. Unlike typical disposable pads, the reusable ones are made out of cloth, with a leak-proof layer that reduces the risk of infection during menstruation. Since the cloth pads are washable, they also go a long way towards environmental sustainability. The women have been set a target to make around 200 pads, during which time they will learn the skills to produce them. Once the women have mastered the skill through practice — likely in a month-and-a-half — work will begin to create channels of distribution. This might begin with government institutions, offices, zila parishad schools and ashram shalas, ie hostels for tribal women. Most women work in the fields and forests. 'There are some young girls, who are graduates but have not found any suitable employment, so have returned to their homes and are not doing anything. They have just taken up farming by joining their families in the fields. Employment is one of the challenges of the area. If we train the women in this skill, we can work out a long-term project whereby they can start producing these sanitary napkins. We can use these sanitary napkins to create a value chain and provide it in the schools and hostels of the tribal department and also, further down the line, we can try to link them online for selling these products,' says Mahaddalkar. The programme is built around the theme of 'Made by Her, Made for Her'. 'Once we have a success story – this is like a pilot for us– we plan to expand it to the other villages. We plan to do it in clusters because we don't have infrastructure and other facilities in every village. So, we'll identify a cluster, where the nearby villages can also be connected. Then, we can start training programmes elsewhere as well,' she adds. The work is continuing despite challenges, such as erratic electric supply, which impacts sewing machines. Nonetheless, officials hope that the number of participants making the pads will increase with other tribal women joining the team. This will not only allow them an income but also generate greater awareness. 'The initiative has helped to improve awareness and adoption of safe menstrual practices, offer hands-on skill development and livelihood opportunity for tribal girls and women, and promote eco-friendly alternatives to single –use menstrual products,' says Avinash Hatwate, an official from ITDP Dharni.
Time of India
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Committee approves STs community rights applications
Madikeri: Under the chairmanship of deputy commissioner Venkat Raja , the district-level forest rights committee approved eight individual and eight community rights applications of Scheduled Tribes under the Forest Rights Act . The approval was granted during a meeting at the deputy commissioner's office. ITDP officer S Honnegowda presented the applications, which previously received sub-division level approval. Community rights were granted to various tribal groups, including Doddareshme JB Ramu and 96 Scheduled Tribes members, Subba PS and 66 tribal members, Bombukadu Ramu PK and 41 tribal members, JB Kumara and 22 tribal members, Airasuli Ramu PS and 46 tribal members, Jangalhadi PC Mada and 32 tribal members, PM Subbanna and 63 tribal members, and Papanna PS and 51 tribal members. In Kodagu district , 2,847 applications came from Scheduled Tribes, 1,373 from others, and 57 under the Forest Rights Act, totalling 4,277 applications. The meeting was attended by district SP K Ramarajan, assistant commissioner Vinayak Narvade, Nagarhole Tiger reserve director PA Seema, deputy conservator of forests Nehru, assistant conservator of forests Ananya Kumar, Lakshmi Kant, and deputy director of land records Narayana Swamy.
Time of India
17-05-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Koragas warn stir over low-quality food
Udupi : Members of the Koraga community , designated as a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG) and residing in Udupi and Dakshina Kannada districts, have expressed grave concerns regarding the poor quality of nutritional food supplies distributed through govt welfare programmes. The community members stated that they were facing health issues such as anaemia, tuberculosis, malnutrition, and a declining population. In response, the govt supplied nutritional food to Koraga families for many years. However, in the past two months, the quality of the nutritional supplies, including ghee, oil, chickpeas, pigeon peas, sugar, jaggery, green gram, rice, palm oil, and eggs, was poor, making them unfit for consumption and causing several health problems for the Koragas, stated Federation of Koraga Associations president Susheela Nada and coordinator Puthran Hebri. A petition was submitted to the Integrated Tribal Development Project (ITDP) office, but there was no response to the main demands of the Koragas. Subsequently, a request was also submitted to the deputy commissioner of Udupi, urging the govt to immediately cancel the old tender, call for a re-tender, and ensure the supply of quality nutritional food. If the serious issues of the Koragas are not addressed promptly, a severe protest will be organised in front of the Udupi deputy commissioner's office by the Koraga organisations, they added. When contacted, ITDP officer Narayana Swamy said that the issue was brought to the notice of the department and a meeting in this regard will be convened by deputy commissioner K Vidya Kumari on Monday. The tender to supply nutritional food was invited at the state level. The contractor was directed to replace the poor-quality nutritional food that they supplied. Further, notice was also served to the contractor, who will also be attending the DC's meeting, he added.
Time of India
12-05-2025
- General
- Time of India
A year on, a man continues to maintain road in Mala
Udupi: For over a year now, Govinda Malekudiya , 56, a resident of the ST colony in Peradka, under the Mala gram panchayat in Karkala taluk, has been single-handedly repairing a half-kilometre stretch of mud road after repeated pleas to local authorities failed to yield any activist Arathi Ashok told TOI that after the issue was highlighted in the media last year, it was brought to the attention of the Lokayukta. The Lokayukta directed the panchayat and social welfare department to take action, but no road has been constructed for the ST colony so far. "We even filed an RTI seeking a response, but received none. We have been regularly following up with the authorities, but there has been no progress," she Govinda has taken matters into his own hands. Armed with just a pickaxe and spade, he not only built a motorable mud road but also provided basic drainage facilities to prevent waterlogging during the monsoons, benefiting around 25 families in the area. A former daily wage labourer for nearly 30 years, he quit his job during the Covid-19 to focus on this cause. Govinda, an agriculturist, also planted over 50 saplings and plans to plant more along the Sringeri-Mala-Bajagoli Road as part of his environmental conservation efforts."Last year, after I approached the Lokayukta, they directed the department to repair about 200m of the road from ward No. 1 to Bugatugundi. Though the road was widened using an earthmover, asphalting work is still pending. The elected representatives do not seem to be showing interest in the project," Arathi development officer Srinivas S said that asphalting is still pending. "We will write to the concerned and try to seek funds through the Integrated Tribal Development Project (ITDP)," he said.
Hindustan Times
10-05-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Dependent parents of deceased govt employee entitled to family pension: HC
MUMBAI: The dependent parents of a deceased, unmarried government employee are entitled to family pension, the Bombay high court has ruled. 'We sincerely believe that if dependent parents have to keep their mind, body and soul together, law must ensure that they receive pension for sustenance,' said a division bench of justices Ravindra Ghuge and Ashwin Bhobe, while directing the Maharashtra government to clear the family pension proposal of a septuagenarian couple from Akola, who lost their son in 2008. In their petition, Vasantrao Deshmukh, 75, and his wife Snehalata, 75, claimed they were denied family pension after their unmarried son died due to a snake bite while working at a tribal school in October 2008. Two years later, in September 2010, the petitioners approached the project officer of the local Integrated Tribal Development Project (ITDP) for family pension. ITDPs are designated areas where tribal people make up 50% or more of the total population. However, in November 2010, the authorities informed the petitioners that the biological parents of a deceased state government employee are not eligible for family pension. This prompted the couple to approach the high court. The advocates for the petitioners pointed out a government resolution (GR) dated January 22, 2015, issued by the state finance department, which said that family pension should be granted to 'wholly dependent parents of a deceased single government servant'. The state government, however, opposed the petition, contending that the biological parents of a deceased single government employee are not covered under the definition of family under the Maharashtra Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 1982. It added that the January 2015 GR could not be applied retrospectively to the case. After hearing both sides, the bench ruled that the couple was eligible to receive family pension, saying the GR was issued with a laudable objective to achieve social security for helpless aged parents. It added that the GR should be made applicable at least to the dependent parent/s surviving on the date of the GR, even if their single child died prior to its issuance. The court directed the state government to approve the petitioner's proposal, pay the arrears due and start paying them a regular pension from July 2025.
