Padman: India Sri Lanka Foundation to help Sri Lankan women get sanitary napkins
New Delhi: Inspired by the Hindi film Padman, the India Sri Lanka Foundation (ISLF), on Tuesday, launched an initiative in Colombo to meet the sanitary needs of underprivileged Sri Lankan women.
Founded as an intergovernmental initiative in 1998, ISLF’s project will be executed locally by Sinidu Foundation, which is working on a health and hygiene project designed for, and by women. The Foundation has sponsored over 300 projects totaling SLR 150 million, with 20 projects currently in the works.
The ISLF has also funded youth exchange programs and encouraged the pursuit of higher education and research.
Indian High Commissioner of Sri Lanka Gopal Baglay, Rifa Mustapha, and Jazaya Mohinudeen, the ISLF Co-Chairpersons, and others attended the event.
Rifa Musthapha, inspired by Dr. Arunachalam Muruganantham (on whose life and contribution was based the Hindi film Padman with Akshay Kumar in the lead role), revealed that 50 percent of underprivileged women in Sri Lanka do not use sanitary napkins because of high costs. Sinidu will benefit them by sourcing low-cost napkin machines and raw materials from India to produce inexpensive biodegradable sanitary napkins.
She said the Sinidu Foundation can replicate this concept across the country, in which women’s groups create low-cost sanitary napkins and also jobs.
The ISLF has provided Sinidu with SLR 500,000 earlier this year.
(Venkatesh)
