The city Corporation’s first reusable cloth pad manufacturing unit, as part of its efforts to promote sustainable menstruation practices and to reduce sanitary waste, will start functioning soon at Kattayikonam.
The civic body’s own building adjacent to the ‘shishu mandiram’ has been identified for the purpose. According to an official of the Corporation’s health wing, production can be expected to begin within three to four months.
“In the initial phase, the aim is to cater to the demand from within the city. The manufacturing unit will have industrial sewing machines, cutting machine, steriliser and a packing unit. Since, we are selling ready-to-use pads, sterilising is a key process. The method to be used for sterilisation, whether it should be using autoclave or UV sterilisation, has not been decided yet,” said the official.
Though a majority of women use single-use disposable pads, health and environmental hazards of the same have been flagged by those working in the field of sustainable menstruation in recent years. As per a study conducted by the Corporation’s panel of experts working in the field of sustainable menstruation, there is considerable demand for sustainable menstruation practices. With awareness campaigns by various NGOs in recent years, quite a few from the younger generation has switched to methods that ensure that.
“At present, the cost of reusable pads in the open market is ₹230-250. We hope to manufacture pads at lesser rates,” said the official.
Initially, five women will be working in the manufacturing unit. Most of them will be recruited from the neighbourhood, to cut down on travel costs.
The Corporation is planning to manufacture two types of pads — ready-to-use pads that could be used as it is, and regular pads that needs to be washed and dried before usage. The ready-to-use pads will have a slightly higher initial cost. The cloth in all the pads will be of high absorption capacity, with the outer layer being made of Polyurethane to prevent leaking. Each cloth pad can be washed and reused several times, thus reducing the amount of waste generated too.
