Opportunity for Funding Menstrual Hygiene Goals in India

Awareness genera on on menstrual waste management

Disposal of menstrual waste, including incinera on

Installa on of sanitary vending machines and incinerators in schools

SBM Grameen Phase 2 has earmarked funding for IEC purposes, which is being used to generate awareness
about menstrual hygiene management. This funding is being used to support MHM communica on and
capacity building ac vi es at the state, district, gram panchayat and village level.
Disposal of menstrual waste including incinera on, etc. is supported at the gram panchayat level using 15th
Finance Commission ed grants on sanita on. MENSTRUAL HYGIENE MANAGEMENT
Funding is also available under the Department of School Educa on and Literacy, Ministry of Educa on for the
purchase of sanitary vending machines and incinerators for schools.
Menstrua on is a natural, normal biological process experienced by adolescent girls and women. Menstrual
health is a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being.

India has been a global leader for ac on on

Menstrual Safe
menstrual hygiene since 2014, with strong
REMEMBER
Safe menstrual
hygiene
disposal
Government leadership, and diverse ac ons by civil educa on and
facili es
hygiene
awareness products
society, the private sector, manufacturers, and
Many sanitary pads are manufactured using materials such as super-absorbent entrepreneurs.
polymers (SAP), plas c, glue, etc., which may take up to 500 to 800 years to decompose. The launch of Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) in
October 2014 was a turning point for the sanita on
SAPs allow sanitary pads to absorb and retain 30 or more mes their weight in fluid, and hygiene landscape in India, including for
causing blockages in sanita on systems. SAPs do not allow the, otherwise compostable, menstrual hygiene management. State Governments MHM
absorbent core to degrade either. showcased innova ve and promising models to
improve MHM; sharing of simple and effec ve CreaƟng a safe and enabling environment for women
Solid Waste Management Rules (SWM) 2016 consider menstrual waste as sanitary solu ons that were instrumental to build and sustain and girls to pracƟce menstrual hygiene management
waste under solid waste. Rules specify responsibili es of users, gram panchayats and improvements for girls and women in India.
manufacturers.

Steps for safe menstrual waste management: Segrega on – Collec on – Transporta on

Menstrual Hygiene Management under Phase 2 of the Swachh
– Treatment. Bharat Mission – Grameen
With the comple on of phase 1 of the Swachh Bharat Mission – Grameen (SBM-G) in October 2019, phase 2 of
the Mission has been launched and is currently being implemented with the objec ve of achieving ‘ODF Plus’
status for villages, i.e., that all villages sustain the gains made under phase 1 of the Mission and ensure effec ve
solid and liquid waste management, which includes menstrual waste management.

Menstrual hygiene management (MHM) is being addressed by the SBM-G on two fronts:
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
1. Informa on, educa on and communica on (IEC) for menstrual hygiene educa on and awareness. This
C Wing, 4th Floor, Pandit Deendayal Antyodaya Bhawan
CGO Complex, Lodhi Road, New Delhi, Delhi 110003 includes informa on around safe menstrual hygiene products; and

Ph: 011 -2436 1011 | Fax: 011- 24361207 2. Menstrual waste management with safe disposal facili es.
Information, Education and Communication (IEC) for MHM Where are the 12 Billion Pads being Disposed?
All villages are being supported to undertake IEC interven ons related to MHM to bring about behaviour
change. Culturally sensi ve and gender-sensi ve interven ons are being promoted so that women and children
are able to realize the benefits of safe MHM. Campaigns are being supported to make adolescent girls and
28% 28%
women aware of ways to reduce and manage menstrual waste using appropriate products and technical op on. disposed along disposed in open
With support from UNICEF, a package of readily available posters and wall pain ngs has already been developed with rou ne waste
for use by States and districts.

28%
33% burnt in
buried the open

Informed Product Choice for Appropriate Menstrual Waste Management

Waste management soluƟons according to type of products being used or promoted1

Disposable Reusable

Compostable Cloth-based
Non compostable sanitary pads Menstrual cups
sanitary pads

IEC Materials on Menstrual Hygiene Mangement and Disposal

Sanitary pads Sanitary pads
with SAP without SAP
Menstrual Waste Management
Biomedical Large-scale recycling*
SBM-G has been suppor ng villages to undertake safe disposal and effec ve management of menstrual waste, incinerators* (not taken off yet)
as part of overall solid waste management in rural areas. *Rural applica on unknown;
Small-scale need large volumes of waste
Compos ng to be collected and transported;
An increasing number of women and girls in India are using disposable sanitary napkins. The focus is to create incinera on
not viable in the immediate future
awareness amongst them and arrangements so that such pads are safely disposed and their disposal causes no
adverse impact on environment. Under the SBM – Grameen Phase-2, the preferred waste management solu ons applicable for rural India are
small scale incinerators and deep burial and compos ng.

An es mated 121 million females within the In case of small-scale incinerators, it is required that all incinerators be used as per the norms of Central or State
reproduc ve age in India are using sanitary napkins Pollu on Control Boards.
For compostable sanitary pads only (e.g., made of natural fibers), deep burial pits are advisable (lxbxd-0.5m x
1 billion 0.5m x 10m or even be er 1.0m x1.0m x1.0m) as it is easy to operate and maintain and affordable. The pit should
36% pads per month
ideally be 5–7 meters away from the drinking water source.
336 million per cycle
menstrua ng
121 million
use sanitary pads
12 billion
women pads per year
1
Ministry of Jal Shak (2018). h ps://jalshak -ddws.gov.in/sites/default/files/MGISC_Menstrual_Waste_Management_WASH_Network.pdf, and van Ejik et al
(2016). Menstrual hygiene management among adolescent girls in India: a systemic review and meta-analysis
Source: WaterAid India and the Menstrual Hygiene Alliance of India (2018)