Global Journal of Human Social Science, C: Sociology and Culture, Volume 22 Issue 1

Menstruation waste was also thought to be related to witchcraft and danger, therefore menstrual fabric had to be buried lest witches seek after human blood and kill women by causing sterility (Kaur et al., 2018, p. 2). These perceptions thus form a foundation that has produced multiple misconceptions and prejudices. Even today girls in many areas cannot turn to their mothers for advice, as often they are ignorant of menstrual hygiene practices (“Spot On!: Improving Menstrual Management in India'', 2015, p. 4). Thus, it is little wonder that research has shown that more than 70% of girls report having no knowledge of menstruation before their first period (“Spot On!: Improving Menstrual Management in India”, 2015, p. 8). As a result of this unprogressive thinking, many girls and women are subject to restrictions in their daily lives while they are menstruating. For a start, fathers or husbands in India’s traditional patriarchal society forbid females from buying pads in many cases due to their enforcement of entrenched backward thinking about menstruation. As a result, they have to use unhygienic materials like cloth. In addition, menstruating women are perceived as being unhygienic and unclean, and hence, they would not be allowed to enter the kitchen, as the food they prepare, or handle could get contaminated (Anand & Garg, 2015). Other restrictions include not being able to enter the prayer room, offering prayers and touching holy books (Kapoor & Puri, 2006). Aside from cultural factors, there are also practical barriers. Due to the relatively expensive cost of pads, almost 70% of women in India say their families cannot afford to buy them (Sinha, 2011). They also have little knowledge of the various types and methods of using them. According to the National Family Health Survey 2015-2016, only around 121 million, or roughly 36%, of India's 336 million menstruation women use sanitary napkins, either locally or commercially made (Upadhyay, 2019). Hygienic toilet facilities are still a big challenge in India. Despite the progress on Swachh Bharat—the Indian Government’s cleanliness campaign, 63 million adolescent girls in India live in households without toilets. In 40% of schools, there are no separate restrooms for girls. Girls are forced to manage their periods in ways that jeopardise their safety and health due to a lack of safe, functional bathrooms. With no toilets in school, they simply do not attend school when they have periods, thus leading to many of them dropping out (“Spot On!: Improving Menstrual Management in India”, 2015, p. 4). Nonetheless, people have started recognising these problems in India and are now working to find solutions. After several efforts by NGOs, groups, and activists, India abolished the 12% tax on all sanitary items in 2018. The announcement came a year after the government imposed the Goods and Services Tax (GST) on all goods, including a 12% duty on menstrual hygiene products (“India scraps tampon tax after the campaign”, 2018). However, tax exemption is merely the first step in a much longer process of making menstruation health and cleanliness a reality for all women in the country. Many non-profit groups in India have begun to address these issues in various ways in order to improve inadequate menstrual hygiene management among girls and women in India. These organisations are running awareness campaigns, training mothers and aunts, and the girls themselves, creating champions, mobilizing communities to end the social taboo. They are also leveraging government schemes and developing innovative solutions to create access to sanitary pads. Some such organisations are Aaina, Goonj, Jayashree, Vatsalya (“Spot On!: Improving Menstrual Management in India”, 2015, p. 49). A case in point is Aaina. Aaina was started with the belief that current challenges that menstruating girls face not only challenge their health but the social context limits their ability to achieve their potential. Since then, Aaina has been rallying communities and promoting knowledge about good menstrual hygiene management practices in 70 villages across three districts of Odisha (“Spot On!: Improving Menstrual Management in India”, 2015, p. 54). The work Goonj has been doing in this field also deserves special mention. At Goonj's Delhi centre, recycled and cleaned cotton material is used to make environmentally friendly sanitary pads known as "MY Pad." These pads are then distributed to girls in underprivileged and marginalised communities in mostly rural and remote parts of India who do not have any other safe and hygienic alternative (“Spot On!: Improving Menstrual Management in India'', 2015, p. 54). However, this is still not close to enough. There are so many areas in rural India that have not been touched by these or other non-profit organisations. Having read and researched about the existing NGOs and the challenges that significantly compromise the health and future of millions of girls in India, something needed to be done to make a difference. Through this, Spot On & Off, an organisation dedicated to working on improving menstrual health awareness was created. After some discussions with a few people working in the area, the focus was on two villages in Mewat. To make an impact, an awareness campaign, combined with a pad distribution drive (with reusable pads) was conducted. Reusable pads were chosen because they are cloth pads made from absorbent fabrics that are worn by women during menstruation (Ndana, 2018, p. 19). As these pads are washable, they may be used again and again for up to 18 months. To understand the impact of these interventions, a survey was conducted pre-campaign and followed up by a survey 3 months post the Volume XXII Issue I Version I 32 ( ) Global Journal of Human Social Science - Year 2022 © 2022 Global Journals C “Spot On & Off”: Evaluation of Effectiveness of Self-Formulated Menstrual Hygiene Campaign in Rural India