Arkajyoti Patra

Dhenkanal, Odisha, Bandipora, Kashmir Two humble initiatives in Odisha and Jammu and Kashmir are making a difference in the lives of thousands of rural women by providing them easy access to sanitary napkins. Ankita Sahoo, known as the ‘padwoman of Odisha’, has been distributing free sanitary napkins and creating awareness about menstrual hygiene among women for over a decade. In another part of the country,  a group of girls from rural Kashmir have started manufacturing low cost sanitary napkins.

Livestock rearing is a major source of livelihood for the people of Limbala village in Gujarat. The village, which is home to nearly 300 families, lies in the heart of Saurashtra – one of the driest and harshest regions of the country. Long dry spells and erratic rainfall in the region make it a challenge for the people to get water and fodder. Large-scale methane emission from the livestock aggravates the situation by adding to the warming up of the region.

Along with colleagues from Aga Khan Rural Support Programme India, I waited at around 4 pm in the dusty weekly haat (village market) of Vadpada village in Umarpada tehsil of Surat district. Umarpada is at the eastern fringe of the district. The villages we visited are riparian to Tapti and its minor tributaries. Small hillocks, numerous spinneys and sights of undulating land mass which has witnessed gully erosion are vivid in my memory.