India produces approximately 113,000 tonnes of menstrual waste annually from used pads alone. However, it is safe to say that none of this waste comes from Jharkhand’s Dhatkidih village, where women and girls have switched to reusable pads. All this is to the credit of Tarun Kumar, also known as the Padman of Jharkhand.
Tarun Kumar, a social worker by profession, was inspired to take up the cause of menstrual hygiene while he was working in a school in Potka village of East Singhbhum district.
Tarun Kumar started ‘pad banks’ in schools and taught students about menstrual health.
He was conducting a workshop when one of the girls suddenly rushed out of the classroom. The student did not return to the class and was found upset, having started menstruating without knowing what it was.
The incident highlighted the urgent need for menstrual health education and the availability of pads.
Taking pads to remote villages
The 33-year-old soon took it upon himself to distribute free sanitary pads to women in remote villages. Kumar started the Nischay Foundation in 2017 and, in the same year, launched his first campaign, during which he distributed over 5,000 napkins to girls reaching adolescence.
Tarun Kumar funds most of the programmes from his personal savings, but his movement is growing.
The foundation also earned a mention in the Limca Book of Records for distributing sanitary pads to 5,240 girls from 120 villages in East Singhbhum district during the lockdown imposed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Over the years, he started ‘pad banks’ in schools and taught students about menstrual health, hygiene, and the problems associated with early marriages. His workshops attracted criticism from conservative sections of society, but that did not stop him.
The shift to sustainable pads
Kumar soon realised the environmental impact of non-biodegradable plastic pads. This prompted him to launch the ‘Ek Pad Ek Ped’ (One Pad, One Tree) initiative, under which girls planted 30,000 saplings across Kolhan, Jharkhand.
In Jharkhand’s Dhatkidih, reusable pads have replaced non-biodegradable pads.
The next step was introducing reusable pad kits under Project Bala. About 5,000 of these kits were distributed to women in Dhatkidih and 100 other villages. This made Dhatkidih a rare example of a 100% menstrual-waste-free village for two consecutive years.
Kumar installed an incinerator in one of the schools to safely dispose of used napkins. One of his students modified a cemented chulha as an affordable alternative to the expensive pad incinerator.
Inspiring community engagement
Years of advocacy by Kumar and his foundation have not only helped break taboos around menstruation but have also encouraged reusable pad use.
Kumar funds most of the programmes from his personal savings, but his movement is gaining momentum. He hopes that one day, the whole of India can be menstrual-waste-free, like Jharkhand’s Dhatkidih.
