The lockdown in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic followed by the devastating cyclone Amphan has left countless people in distress in West Bengal. Numerous relief initiatives are trying to reach out to as many people as possible with daily needs and essential items. As the lockdown was imposed, many of the initial efforts to reach out to people did not cover menstrual needs of women. Being an organization working with menstrual health and hygiene management, we have been advocating inclusion of sanitary pads as an essential item in relief initiatives post the pandemic lockdown. We are glad to share that we have been receiving requests from collectives and individuals, who are dedicatedly working to reach out to the last mile communities, for providing sanitary pads. Till date we have been able to contribute 60,000 sanitary pads across West Bengal, from Kolkata to Sunderbans, reaching out to 4000 women through tireless efforts by networks and individuals that we have partnered with. (Report: https://www.youthkiawaaz.com/2020/05/menstrual-health-matters-in-pandemic/)

We are continuously getting requests to provide more sanitary pads for communities across West Bengal, especially the cyclone hit zones. We need your support. We are starting small on this platform and we hope to keep on with our efforts.

With Rs. 50,000 raised on this platform we can commit to 12,500 more sanitary pads reaching out to more than 1000 families, in areas such as such as Sandeshkhali, Basanti, Hingalganj, Kakdwip and more, through  ongoing initiatives by individuals and networks -UPAJ India org, Sunderban Solidarity, JUCommune - to name a few.
Period does not stop for Pandemic or a Cyclone. Help women access sanitary pads. #MenstrualHealthMattersInPandemic #Amphan