Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 73
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Code Context


        trigger_error($message, E_USER_DEPRECATED);

    }
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 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php.'
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deprecationWarning - CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311
Cake\Http\ServerRequest::offsetGet() - CORE/src/Http/ServerRequest.php, line 2421
App\Controller\ArtileDetailController::printArticle() - APP/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line 73
Cake\Controller\Controller::invokeAction() - CORE/src/Controller/Controller.php, line 610
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 120
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 94
Cake\Http\BaseApplication::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/BaseApplication.php, line 235
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\RoutingMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/RoutingMiddleware.php, line 162
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\AssetMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/AssetMiddleware.php, line 88
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Error\Middleware\ErrorHandlerMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Error/Middleware/ErrorHandlerMiddleware.php, line 96
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Http\Runner::run() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 51
Cake\Http\Server::run() - CORE/src/Http/Server.php, line 98

Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 74
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Code Context


        trigger_error($message, E_USER_DEPRECATED);

    }
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 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php.'
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deprecationWarning - CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311
Cake\Http\ServerRequest::offsetGet() - CORE/src/Http/ServerRequest.php, line 2421
App\Controller\ArtileDetailController::printArticle() - APP/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line 74
Cake\Controller\Controller::invokeAction() - CORE/src/Controller/Controller.php, line 610
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 120
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 94
Cake\Http\BaseApplication::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/BaseApplication.php, line 235
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\RoutingMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/RoutingMiddleware.php, line 162
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\AssetMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/AssetMiddleware.php, line 88
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Error\Middleware\ErrorHandlerMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Error/Middleware/ErrorHandlerMiddleware.php, line 96
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Http\Runner::run() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 51
Cake\Http\Server::run() - CORE/src/Http/Server.php, line 98

Warning (512): Unable to emit headers. Headers sent in file=/home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php line=853 [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 48]
Code Context
            if (Configure::read('debug')) {

                trigger_error($message, E_USER_WARNING);

            } else {
$response = object(Cake\Http\Response) {

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    <link rel="canonical" href="https://im4change.in/<pre class="cake-error"><a href="javascript:void(0);" onclick="document.getElementById('cakeErr680336981f6ae-trace').style.display = (document.getElementById('cakeErr680336981f6ae-trace').style.display == 'none' ? '' : 'none');"><b>Notice</b> (8)</a>: Undefined variable: urlPrefix [<b>APP/Template/Layout/printlayout.ctp</b>, line <b>8</b>]<div id="cakeErr680336981f6ae-trace" class="cake-stack-trace" style="display: none;"><a href="javascript:void(0);" onclick="document.getElementById('cakeErr680336981f6ae-code').style.display = (document.getElementById('cakeErr680336981f6ae-code').style.display == 'none' ? '' : 'none')">Code</a> <a href="javascript:void(0);" onclick="document.getElementById('cakeErr680336981f6ae-context').style.display = (document.getElementById('cakeErr680336981f6ae-context').style.display == 'none' ? '' : 'none')">Context</a><pre id="cakeErr680336981f6ae-code" class="cake-code-dump" style="display: none;"><code><span style="color: #000000"><span style="color: #0000BB"></span><span style="color: #007700">&lt;</span><span style="color: #0000BB">head</span><span style="color: #007700">&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Likely to be rolled out gradually, in 3 to 6 months from now&amp;nbsp; &lt;/em&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;&amp;ldquo;Highly subsidised&amp;rdquo; sanitary napkins will be supplied to women above poverty line&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;To boost female health and hygiene in rural India, the Union government is working on a scheme to provide women living below poverty line (BPL) with free sanitary napkins. &lt;/em&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The scheme, which will eventually supply &amp;ldquo;highly subsidised&amp;rdquo; sanitary napkins to women above the poverty line, is likely to be rolled out gradually, in three to six months from now. Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said on Saturday that the government intended to take care of the sexual and reproductive health needs of adolescent girls through a community-led programme for behaviour change by promoting the use of sanitary napkins. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;In the absence of affordable sanitary napkins, poor women are forced to use rags during menstrual cycle. Public health experts say this practice, and the resultant poor hygiene, are one of the reasons for the high incidence of reproductive tract infections in India. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Ministry officials told The&amp;ensp;Hindu that the government was working on various models, including public-private partnership, to ensure that sanitary napkins were supplied free of cost to girls of BPL families, and at highly subsidised rates for others. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The scheme has to be sustainable, with provisions for disposal, a major problem in urban areas. Several meetings have been held to give a final shape to the scheme, which will cover 200 million rural women, each using 100 sanitary napkins a year. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The Tamil Nadu government has been running a scheme in some districts, where girl schools have sanitary napkin vending machines and incinerators. The napkins can either be bought or are provided free of cost to poor girls. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The scheme is being implemented in collaboration with the UNICEF, non-governmental organisations and corporate houses. Haryana has also launched a similar scheme in some rural areas. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Going by the expense involved &amp;mdash; providing up to 200 million women with 100 sanitary napkins a year will cost the government a minimum of Rs.2,000 crore assuming a cost price of one rupee per napkin &amp;mdash; the government is looking at the possibility of roping in sponsors, and of implementing the scheme in phases. The Centre also plans to use this huge subsidised demand to create low-cost supplies.&lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&amp;ldquo;India has to learn to look after its girls better, if it pursues its inclusive agenda of social development.&amp;rdquo; &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Spandan Samaj Sewa, a Khandwa-based NGO, says the scheme will receive tremendous response. Prakash Michael of the Sewa, which makes sanitary napkins from old clothes and supplies them to women in the district, says rural women were willing to spend up to Rs.3 a napkin, while those in urban slums are willing to pay up Rs.5, as they know the importance of hygiene in their lives. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;He says the only issue is the high cost of transport of the napkins, which are being made elsewhere. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&amp;ldquo;The government has the option of using public transport, which will further bring down the cost.&amp;rdquo; &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Likely to be rolled out gradually, in 3 to 6 months from now&amp;nbsp; &lt;/em&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;&amp;ldquo;Highly subsidised&amp;rdquo; sanitary napkins will be supplied to women above poverty line&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;To boost female health and hygiene in rural India, the Union government is working on a scheme to provide women living below poverty line (BPL) with free sanitary napkins. &lt;/em&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The scheme, which will eventually supply &amp;ldquo;highly subsidised&amp;rdquo; sanitary napkins to women above the poverty line, is likely to be rolled out gradually, in three to six months from now. Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said on Saturday that the government intended to take care of the sexual and reproductive health needs of adolescent girls through a community-led programme for behaviour change by promoting the use of sanitary napkins. &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;In the absence of affordable sanitary napkins, poor women are forced to use rags during menstrual cycle. Public health experts say this practice, and the resultant poor hygiene, are one of the reasons for the high incidence of reproductive tract infections in India. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Ministry officials told The&amp;ensp;Hindu that the government was working on various models, including public-private partnership, to ensure that sanitary napkins were supplied free of cost to girls of BPL families, and at highly subsidised rates for others. &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The scheme has to be sustainable, with provisions for disposal, a major problem in urban areas. Several meetings have been held to give a final shape to the scheme, which will cover 200 million rural women, each using 100 sanitary napkins a year. &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The Tamil Nadu government has been running a scheme in some districts, where girl schools have sanitary napkin vending machines and incinerators. The napkins can either be bought or are provided free of cost to poor girls. &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The scheme is being implemented in collaboration with the UNICEF, non-governmental organisations and corporate houses. Haryana has also launched a similar scheme in some rural areas. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Going by the expense involved &amp;mdash; providing up to 200 million women with 100 sanitary napkins a year will cost the government a minimum of Rs.2,000 crore assuming a cost price of one rupee per napkin &amp;mdash; the government is looking at the possibility of roping in sponsors, and of implementing the scheme in phases. The Centre also plans to use this huge subsidised demand to create low-cost supplies.&lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&amp;ldquo;India has to learn to look after its girls better, if it pursues its inclusive agenda of social development.&amp;rdquo; &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Spandan Samaj Sewa, a Khandwa-based NGO, says the scheme will receive tremendous response. Prakash Michael of the Sewa, which makes sanitary napkins from old clothes and supplies them to women in the district, says rural women were willing to spend up to Rs.3 a napkin, while those in urban slums are willing to pay up Rs.5, as they know the importance of hygiene in their lives. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;He says the only issue is the high cost of transport of the napkins, which are being made elsewhere. &lt;/font&gt;
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Likely to be rolled out gradually, in 3 to 6 months from now&amp;nbsp; 


Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women


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Likely to be rolled out gradually, in 3 to 6 months from now&nbsp; 


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                <strong>Centre mulls over scheme to provide free sanitary napkins to rural poor by Aarti Dhar</strong></h1>
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                <p align="justify"><font ><em>Likely to be rolled out gradually, in 3 to 6 months from now&nbsp; </em></font></p><p align="justify"><font ><em>Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women</em></font></p><p align="justify"><font ><em>&ldquo;Highly subsidised&rdquo; sanitary napkins will be supplied to women above poverty line</em></font></p><p align="justify"><font ><em>To boost female health and hygiene in rural India, the Union government is working on a scheme to provide women living below poverty line (BPL) with free sanitary napkins. </em></font></p><p align="justify"><font >The scheme, which will eventually supply &ldquo;highly subsidised&rdquo; sanitary napkins to women above the poverty line, is likely to be rolled out gradually, in three to six months from now. Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said on Saturday that the government intended to take care of the sexual and reproductive health needs of adolescent girls through a community-led programme for behaviour change by promoting the use of sanitary napkins. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >In the absence of affordable sanitary napkins, poor women are forced to use rags during menstrual cycle. Public health experts say this practice, and the resultant poor hygiene, are one of the reasons for the high incidence of reproductive tract infections in India. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Ministry officials told The&ensp;Hindu that the government was working on various models, including public-private partnership, to ensure that sanitary napkins were supplied free of cost to girls of BPL families, and at highly subsidised rates for others. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >The scheme has to be sustainable, with provisions for disposal, a major problem in urban areas. Several meetings have been held to give a final shape to the scheme, which will cover 200 million rural women, each using 100 sanitary napkins a year. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >The Tamil Nadu government has been running a scheme in some districts, where girl schools have sanitary napkin vending machines and incinerators. The napkins can either be bought or are provided free of cost to poor girls. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >The scheme is being implemented in collaboration with the UNICEF, non-governmental organisations and corporate houses. Haryana has also launched a similar scheme in some rural areas. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Going by the expense involved &mdash; providing up to 200 million women with 100 sanitary napkins a year will cost the government a minimum of Rs.2,000 crore assuming a cost price of one rupee per napkin &mdash; the government is looking at the possibility of roping in sponsors, and of implementing the scheme in phases. The Centre also plans to use this huge subsidised demand to create low-cost supplies.</font></p><p align="justify"><font >&ldquo;India has to learn to look after its girls better, if it pursues its inclusive agenda of social development.&rdquo; </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Spandan Samaj Sewa, a Khandwa-based NGO, says the scheme will receive tremendous response. Prakash Michael of the Sewa, which makes sanitary napkins from old clothes and supplies them to women in the district, says rural women were willing to spend up to Rs.3 a napkin, while those in urban slums are willing to pay up Rs.5, as they know the importance of hygiene in their lives. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >He says the only issue is the high cost of transport of the napkins, which are being made elsewhere. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >&ldquo;The government has the option of using public transport, which will further bring down the cost.&rdquo; </font></p><p align="justify"><font ></font></p>               </font>
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		&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;Centre mulls over scheme to provide free sanitary napkins to rural poor by Aarti Dhar&#039;,
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Likely to be rolled out gradually, in 3 to 6 months from now&amp;nbsp; &lt;/em&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;&amp;ldquo;Highly subsidised&amp;rdquo; sanitary napkins will be supplied to women above poverty line&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;To boost female health and hygiene in rural India, the Union government is working on a scheme to provide women living below poverty line (BPL) with free sanitary napkins. &lt;/em&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The scheme, which will eventually supply &amp;ldquo;highly subsidised&amp;rdquo; sanitary napkins to women above the poverty line, is likely to be rolled out gradually, in three to six months from now. Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said on Saturday that the government intended to take care of the sexual and reproductive health needs of adolescent girls through a community-led programme for behaviour change by promoting the use of sanitary napkins. &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;In the absence of affordable sanitary napkins, poor women are forced to use rags during menstrual cycle. Public health experts say this practice, and the resultant poor hygiene, are one of the reasons for the high incidence of reproductive tract infections in India. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Ministry officials told The&amp;ensp;Hindu that the government was working on various models, including public-private partnership, to ensure that sanitary napkins were supplied free of cost to girls of BPL families, and at highly subsidised rates for others. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The scheme has to be sustainable, with provisions for disposal, a major problem in urban areas. Several meetings have been held to give a final shape to the scheme, which will cover 200 million rural women, each using 100 sanitary napkins a year. &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The Tamil Nadu government has been running a scheme in some districts, where girl schools have sanitary napkin vending machines and incinerators. The napkins can either be bought or are provided free of cost to poor girls. &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The scheme is being implemented in collaboration with the UNICEF, non-governmental organisations and corporate houses. Haryana has also launched a similar scheme in some rural areas. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Going by the expense involved &amp;mdash; providing up to 200 million women with 100 sanitary napkins a year will cost the government a minimum of Rs.2,000 crore assuming a cost price of one rupee per napkin &amp;mdash; the government is looking at the possibility of roping in sponsors, and of implementing the scheme in phases. The Centre also plans to use this huge subsidised demand to create low-cost supplies.&lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&amp;ldquo;India has to learn to look after its girls better, if it pursues its inclusive agenda of social development.&amp;rdquo; &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Spandan Samaj Sewa, a Khandwa-based NGO, says the scheme will receive tremendous response. Prakash Michael of the Sewa, which makes sanitary napkins from old clothes and supplies them to women in the district, says rural women were willing to spend up to Rs.3 a napkin, while those in urban slums are willing to pay up Rs.5, as they know the importance of hygiene in their lives. &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;He says the only issue is the high cost of transport of the napkins, which are being made elsewhere. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&amp;ldquo;The government has the option of using public transport, which will further bring down the cost.&amp;rdquo; &lt;/font&gt;
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	&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;Centre mulls over scheme to provide free sanitary napkins to rural poor by Aarti Dhar&#039;,
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Likely to be rolled out gradually, in 3 to 6 months from now&amp;nbsp; &lt;/em&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;&amp;ldquo;Highly subsidised&amp;rdquo; sanitary napkins will be supplied to women above poverty line&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;To boost female health and hygiene in rural India, the Union government is working on a scheme to provide women living below poverty line (BPL) with free sanitary napkins. &lt;/em&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The scheme, which will eventually supply &amp;ldquo;highly subsidised&amp;rdquo; sanitary napkins to women above the poverty line, is likely to be rolled out gradually, in three to six months from now. Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women. &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said on Saturday that the government intended to take care of the sexual and reproductive health needs of adolescent girls through a community-led programme for behaviour change by promoting the use of sanitary napkins. &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;In the absence of affordable sanitary napkins, poor women are forced to use rags during menstrual cycle. Public health experts say this practice, and the resultant poor hygiene, are one of the reasons for the high incidence of reproductive tract infections in India. &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Ministry officials told The&amp;ensp;Hindu that the government was working on various models, including public-private partnership, to ensure that sanitary napkins were supplied free of cost to girls of BPL families, and at highly subsidised rates for others. &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The scheme has to be sustainable, with provisions for disposal, a major problem in urban areas. Several meetings have been held to give a final shape to the scheme, which will cover 200 million rural women, each using 100 sanitary napkins a year. &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The Tamil Nadu government has been running a scheme in some districts, where girl schools have sanitary napkin vending machines and incinerators. The napkins can either be bought or are provided free of cost to poor girls. &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The scheme is being implemented in collaboration with the UNICEF, non-governmental organisations and corporate houses. Haryana has also launched a similar scheme in some rural areas. &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Going by the expense involved &amp;mdash; providing up to 200 million women with 100 sanitary napkins a year will cost the government a minimum of Rs.2,000 crore assuming a cost price of one rupee per napkin &amp;mdash; the government is looking at the possibility of roping in sponsors, and of implementing the scheme in phases. The Centre also plans to use this huge subsidised demand to create low-cost supplies.&lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&amp;ldquo;India has to learn to look after its girls better, if it pursues its inclusive agenda of social development.&amp;rdquo; &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Spandan Samaj Sewa, a Khandwa-based NGO, says the scheme will receive tremendous response. Prakash Michael of the Sewa, which makes sanitary napkins from old clothes and supplies them to women in the district, says rural women were willing to spend up to Rs.3 a napkin, while those in urban slums are willing to pay up Rs.5, as they know the importance of hygiene in their lives. &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;He says the only issue is the high cost of transport of the napkins, which are being made elsewhere. &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&amp;ldquo;The government has the option of using public transport, which will further bring down the cost.&amp;rdquo; &lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
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Likely to be rolled out gradually, in 3 to 6 months from now&nbsp; 


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                <strong>Centre mulls over scheme to provide free sanitary napkins to rural poor by Aarti Dhar</strong></h1>
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                <p align="justify"><font ><em>Likely to be rolled out gradually, in 3 to 6 months from now&nbsp; </em></font></p><p align="justify"><font ><em>Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women</em></font></p><p align="justify"><font ><em>&ldquo;Highly subsidised&rdquo; sanitary napkins will be supplied to women above poverty line</em></font></p><p align="justify"><font ><em>To boost female health and hygiene in rural India, the Union government is working on a scheme to provide women living below poverty line (BPL) with free sanitary napkins. </em></font></p><p align="justify"><font >The scheme, which will eventually supply &ldquo;highly subsidised&rdquo; sanitary napkins to women above the poverty line, is likely to be rolled out gradually, in three to six months from now. Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said on Saturday that the government intended to take care of the sexual and reproductive health needs of adolescent girls through a community-led programme for behaviour change by promoting the use of sanitary napkins. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >In the absence of affordable sanitary napkins, poor women are forced to use rags during menstrual cycle. Public health experts say this practice, and the resultant poor hygiene, are one of the reasons for the high incidence of reproductive tract infections in India. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Ministry officials told The&ensp;Hindu that the government was working on various models, including public-private partnership, to ensure that sanitary napkins were supplied free of cost to girls of BPL families, and at highly subsidised rates for others. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >The scheme has to be sustainable, with provisions for disposal, a major problem in urban areas. Several meetings have been held to give a final shape to the scheme, which will cover 200 million rural women, each using 100 sanitary napkins a year. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >The Tamil Nadu government has been running a scheme in some districts, where girl schools have sanitary napkin vending machines and incinerators. The napkins can either be bought or are provided free of cost to poor girls. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >The scheme is being implemented in collaboration with the UNICEF, non-governmental organisations and corporate houses. Haryana has also launched a similar scheme in some rural areas. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Going by the expense involved &mdash; providing up to 200 million women with 100 sanitary napkins a year will cost the government a minimum of Rs.2,000 crore assuming a cost price of one rupee per napkin &mdash; the government is looking at the possibility of roping in sponsors, and of implementing the scheme in phases. The Centre also plans to use this huge subsidised demand to create low-cost supplies.</font></p><p align="justify"><font >&ldquo;India has to learn to look after its girls better, if it pursues its inclusive agenda of social development.&rdquo; </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Spandan Samaj Sewa, a Khandwa-based NGO, says the scheme will receive tremendous response. Prakash Michael of the Sewa, which makes sanitary napkins from old clothes and supplies them to women in the district, says rural women were willing to spend up to Rs.3 a napkin, while those in urban slums are willing to pay up Rs.5, as they know the importance of hygiene in their lives. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >He says the only issue is the high cost of transport of the napkins, which are being made elsewhere. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >&ldquo;The government has the option of using public transport, which will further bring down the cost.&rdquo; </font></p><p align="justify"><font ></font></p>               </font>
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;To boost female health and hygiene in rural India, the Union government is working on a scheme to provide women living below poverty line (BPL) with free sanitary napkins. &lt;/em&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The scheme, which will eventually supply &amp;ldquo;highly subsidised&amp;rdquo; sanitary napkins to women above the poverty line, is likely to be rolled out gradually, in three to six months from now. Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said on Saturday that the government intended to take care of the sexual and reproductive health needs of adolescent girls through a community-led programme for behaviour change by promoting the use of sanitary napkins. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;In the absence of affordable sanitary napkins, poor women are forced to use rags during menstrual cycle. Public health experts say this practice, and the resultant poor hygiene, are one of the reasons for the high incidence of reproductive tract infections in India. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Ministry officials told The&amp;ensp;Hindu that the government was working on various models, including public-private partnership, to ensure that sanitary napkins were supplied free of cost to girls of BPL families, and at highly subsidised rates for others. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The scheme has to be sustainable, with provisions for disposal, a major problem in urban areas. Several meetings have been held to give a final shape to the scheme, which will cover 200 million rural women, each using 100 sanitary napkins a year. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The Tamil Nadu government has been running a scheme in some districts, where girl schools have sanitary napkin vending machines and incinerators. The napkins can either be bought or are provided free of cost to poor girls. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Spandan Samaj Sewa, a Khandwa-based NGO, says the scheme will receive tremendous response. Prakash Michael of the Sewa, which makes sanitary napkins from old clothes and supplies them to women in the district, says rural women were willing to spend up to Rs.3 a napkin, while those in urban slums are willing to pay up Rs.5, as they know the importance of hygiene in their lives. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;To boost female health and hygiene in rural India, the Union government is working on a scheme to provide women living below poverty line (BPL) with free sanitary napkins. &lt;/em&gt;&lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;The scheme, which will eventually supply &amp;ldquo;highly subsidised&amp;rdquo; sanitary napkins to women above the poverty line, is likely to be rolled out gradually, in three to six months from now. Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said on Saturday that the government intended to take care of the sexual and reproductive health needs of adolescent girls through a community-led programme for behaviour change by promoting the use of sanitary napkins. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;In the absence of affordable sanitary napkins, poor women are forced to use rags during menstrual cycle. Public health experts say this practice, and the resultant poor hygiene, are one of the reasons for the high incidence of reproductive tract infections in India. &lt;/font&gt;
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&lt;font face=&quot;arial,helvetica,sans-serif&quot; size=&quot;3&quot;&gt;Ministry officials told The&amp;ensp;Hindu that the government was working on various models, including public-private partnership, to ensure that sanitary napkins were supplied free of cost to girls of BPL families, and at highly subsidised rates for others. &lt;/font&gt;
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                <strong>Centre mulls over scheme to provide free sanitary napkins to rural poor by Aarti Dhar</strong></h1>
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                <p align="justify"><font ><em>Likely to be rolled out gradually, in 3 to 6 months from now&nbsp; </em></font></p><p align="justify"><font ><em>Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women</em></font></p><p align="justify"><font ><em>&ldquo;Highly subsidised&rdquo; sanitary napkins will be supplied to women above poverty line</em></font></p><p align="justify"><font ><em>To boost female health and hygiene in rural India, the Union government is working on a scheme to provide women living below poverty line (BPL) with free sanitary napkins. </em></font></p><p align="justify"><font >The scheme, which will eventually supply &ldquo;highly subsidised&rdquo; sanitary napkins to women above the poverty line, is likely to be rolled out gradually, in three to six months from now. Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said on Saturday that the government intended to take care of the sexual and reproductive health needs of adolescent girls through a community-led programme for behaviour change by promoting the use of sanitary napkins. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >In the absence of affordable sanitary napkins, poor women are forced to use rags during menstrual cycle. Public health experts say this practice, and the resultant poor hygiene, are one of the reasons for the high incidence of reproductive tract infections in India. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Ministry officials told The&ensp;Hindu that the government was working on various models, including public-private partnership, to ensure that sanitary napkins were supplied free of cost to girls of BPL families, and at highly subsidised rates for others. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >The scheme has to be sustainable, with provisions for disposal, a major problem in urban areas. Several meetings have been held to give a final shape to the scheme, which will cover 200 million rural women, each using 100 sanitary napkins a year. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >The Tamil Nadu government has been running a scheme in some districts, where girl schools have sanitary napkin vending machines and incinerators. The napkins can either be bought or are provided free of cost to poor girls. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >The scheme is being implemented in collaboration with the UNICEF, non-governmental organisations and corporate houses. Haryana has also launched a similar scheme in some rural areas. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Going by the expense involved &mdash; providing up to 200 million women with 100 sanitary napkins a year will cost the government a minimum of Rs.2,000 crore assuming a cost price of one rupee per napkin &mdash; the government is looking at the possibility of roping in sponsors, and of implementing the scheme in phases. The Centre also plans to use this huge subsidised demand to create low-cost supplies.</font></p><p align="justify"><font >&ldquo;India has to learn to look after its girls better, if it pursues its inclusive agenda of social development.&rdquo; </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Spandan Samaj Sewa, a Khandwa-based NGO, says the scheme will receive tremendous response. Prakash Michael of the Sewa, which makes sanitary napkins from old clothes and supplies them to women in the district, says rural women were willing to spend up to Rs.3 a napkin, while those in urban slums are willing to pay up Rs.5, as they know the importance of hygiene in their lives. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >He says the only issue is the high cost of transport of the napkins, which are being made elsewhere. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >&ldquo;The government has the option of using public transport, which will further bring down the cost.&rdquo; </font></p><p align="justify"><font ></font></p>               </font>
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Likely to be rolled out gradually, in 3 to 6 months from now&nbsp; 


Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women


&ldquo;Highly subsidised&rdquo; sanitary napkins will be supplied to women above poverty line


To boost female health...',
	'disp' => '<p align="justify"><font ><em>Likely to be rolled out gradually, in 3 to 6 months from now&nbsp; </em></font></p><p align="justify"><font ><em>Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women</em></font></p><p align="justify"><font ><em>&ldquo;Highly subsidised&rdquo; sanitary napkins will be supplied to women above poverty line</em></font></p><p align="justify"><font ><em>To boost female health and hygiene in rural India, the Union government is working on a scheme to provide women living below poverty line (BPL) with free sanitary napkins. </em></font></p><p align="justify"><font >The scheme, which will eventually supply &ldquo;highly subsidised&rdquo; sanitary napkins to women above the poverty line, is likely to be rolled out gradually, in three to six months from now. Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said on Saturday that the government intended to take care of the sexual and reproductive health needs of adolescent girls through a community-led programme for behaviour change by promoting the use of sanitary napkins. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >In the absence of affordable sanitary napkins, poor women are forced to use rags during menstrual cycle. Public health experts say this practice, and the resultant poor hygiene, are one of the reasons for the high incidence of reproductive tract infections in India. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Ministry officials told The&ensp;Hindu that the government was working on various models, including public-private partnership, to ensure that sanitary napkins were supplied free of cost to girls of BPL families, and at highly subsidised rates for others. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >The scheme has to be sustainable, with provisions for disposal, a major problem in urban areas. Several meetings have been held to give a final shape to the scheme, which will cover 200 million rural women, each using 100 sanitary napkins a year. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >The Tamil Nadu government has been running a scheme in some districts, where girl schools have sanitary napkin vending machines and incinerators. The napkins can either be bought or are provided free of cost to poor girls. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >The scheme is being implemented in collaboration with the UNICEF, non-governmental organisations and corporate houses. Haryana has also launched a similar scheme in some rural areas. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Going by the expense involved &mdash; providing up to 200 million women with 100 sanitary napkins a year will cost the government a minimum of Rs.2,000 crore assuming a cost price of one rupee per napkin &mdash; the government is looking at the possibility of roping in sponsors, and of implementing the scheme in phases. The Centre also plans to use this huge subsidised demand to create low-cost supplies.</font></p><p align="justify"><font >&ldquo;India has to learn to look after its girls better, if it pursues its inclusive agenda of social development.&rdquo; </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Spandan Samaj Sewa, a Khandwa-based NGO, says the scheme will receive tremendous response. Prakash Michael of the Sewa, which makes sanitary napkins from old clothes and supplies them to women in the district, says rural women were willing to spend up to Rs.3 a napkin, while those in urban slums are willing to pay up Rs.5, as they know the importance of hygiene in their lives. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >He says the only issue is the high cost of transport of the napkins, which are being made elsewhere. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >&ldquo;The government has the option of using public transport, which will further bring down the cost.&rdquo; </font></p><p align="justify"><font ></font></p>',
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	'title' => 'Centre mulls over scheme to provide free sanitary napkins to rural poor by Aarti Dhar',
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<font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><em>Likely to be rolled out gradually, in 3 to 6 months from now&nbsp; </em></font>
</p>
<p align="justify">
<font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><em>Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women</em></font>
</p>
<p align="justify">
<font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><em>&ldquo;Highly subsidised&rdquo; sanitary napkins will be supplied to women above poverty line</em></font>
</p>
<p align="justify">
<font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><em>To boost female health and hygiene in rural India, the Union government is working on a scheme to provide women living below poverty line (BPL) with free sanitary napkins. </em></font>
</p>
<p align="justify">
<font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="3">The scheme, which will eventually supply &ldquo;highly subsidised&rdquo; sanitary napkins to women above the poverty line, is likely to be rolled out gradually, in three to six months from now. Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women. </font>
</p>
<p align="justify">
<font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="3">Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said on Saturday that the government intended to take care of the sexual and reproductive health needs of adolescent girls through a community-led programme for behaviour change by promoting the use of sanitary napkins. </font>
</p>
<p align="justify">
<font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="3">In the absence of affordable sanitary napkins, poor women are forced to use rags during menstrual cycle. Public health experts say this practice, and the resultant poor hygiene, are one of the reasons for the high incidence of reproductive tract infections in India. </font>
</p>
<p align="justify">
<font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="3">Ministry officials told The&ensp;Hindu that the government was working on various models, including public-private partnership, to ensure that sanitary napkins were supplied free of cost to girls of BPL families, and at highly subsidised rates for others. </font>
</p>
<p align="justify">
<font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="3">The scheme has to be sustainable, with provisions for disposal, a major problem in urban areas. Several meetings have been held to give a final shape to the scheme, which will cover 200 million rural women, each using 100 sanitary napkins a year. </font>
</p>
<p align="justify">
<font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="3">The Tamil Nadu government has been running a scheme in some districts, where girl schools have sanitary napkin vending machines and incinerators. The napkins can either be bought or are provided free of cost to poor girls. </font>
</p>
<p align="justify">
<font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="3">The scheme is being implemented in collaboration with the UNICEF, non-governmental organisations and corporate houses. Haryana has also launched a similar scheme in some rural areas. </font>
</p>
<p align="justify">
<font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="3">Going by the expense involved &mdash; providing up to 200 million women with 100 sanitary napkins a year will cost the government a minimum of Rs.2,000 crore assuming a cost price of one rupee per napkin &mdash; the government is looking at the possibility of roping in sponsors, and of implementing the scheme in phases. The Centre also plans to use this huge subsidised demand to create low-cost supplies.</font>
</p>
<p align="justify">
<font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="3">&ldquo;India has to learn to look after its girls better, if it pursues its inclusive agenda of social development.&rdquo; </font>
</p>
<p align="justify">
<font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="3">Spandan Samaj Sewa, a Khandwa-based NGO, says the scheme will receive tremendous response. Prakash Michael of the Sewa, which makes sanitary napkins from old clothes and supplies them to women in the district, says rural women were willing to spend up to Rs.3 a napkin, while those in urban slums are willing to pay up Rs.5, as they know the importance of hygiene in their lives. </font>
</p>
<p align="justify">
<font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="3">He says the only issue is the high cost of transport of the napkins, which are being made elsewhere. </font>
</p>
<p align="justify">
<font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="3">&ldquo;The government has the option of using public transport, which will further bring down the cost.&rdquo; </font>
</p>
<p align="justify">
<font face="arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"></font>
</p>
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Likely to be rolled out gradually, in 3 to 6 months from now&nbsp; 


Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women


&ldquo;Highly subsidised&rdquo; sanitary napkins will be supplied to women above poverty line


To boost female health...'
$disp = '<p align="justify"><font ><em>Likely to be rolled out gradually, in 3 to 6 months from now&nbsp; </em></font></p><p align="justify"><font ><em>Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women</em></font></p><p align="justify"><font ><em>&ldquo;Highly subsidised&rdquo; sanitary napkins will be supplied to women above poverty line</em></font></p><p align="justify"><font ><em>To boost female health and hygiene in rural India, the Union government is working on a scheme to provide women living below poverty line (BPL) with free sanitary napkins. </em></font></p><p align="justify"><font >The scheme, which will eventually supply &ldquo;highly subsidised&rdquo; sanitary napkins to women above the poverty line, is likely to be rolled out gradually, in three to six months from now. Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said on Saturday that the government intended to take care of the sexual and reproductive health needs of adolescent girls through a community-led programme for behaviour change by promoting the use of sanitary napkins. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >In the absence of affordable sanitary napkins, poor women are forced to use rags during menstrual cycle. Public health experts say this practice, and the resultant poor hygiene, are one of the reasons for the high incidence of reproductive tract infections in India. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Ministry officials told The&ensp;Hindu that the government was working on various models, including public-private partnership, to ensure that sanitary napkins were supplied free of cost to girls of BPL families, and at highly subsidised rates for others. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >The scheme has to be sustainable, with provisions for disposal, a major problem in urban areas. Several meetings have been held to give a final shape to the scheme, which will cover 200 million rural women, each using 100 sanitary napkins a year. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >The Tamil Nadu government has been running a scheme in some districts, where girl schools have sanitary napkin vending machines and incinerators. The napkins can either be bought or are provided free of cost to poor girls. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >The scheme is being implemented in collaboration with the UNICEF, non-governmental organisations and corporate houses. Haryana has also launched a similar scheme in some rural areas. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Going by the expense involved &mdash; providing up to 200 million women with 100 sanitary napkins a year will cost the government a minimum of Rs.2,000 crore assuming a cost price of one rupee per napkin &mdash; the government is looking at the possibility of roping in sponsors, and of implementing the scheme in phases. The Centre also plans to use this huge subsidised demand to create low-cost supplies.</font></p><p align="justify"><font >&ldquo;India has to learn to look after its girls better, if it pursues its inclusive agenda of social development.&rdquo; </font></p><p align="justify"><font >Spandan Samaj Sewa, a Khandwa-based NGO, says the scheme will receive tremendous response. Prakash Michael of the Sewa, which makes sanitary napkins from old clothes and supplies them to women in the district, says rural women were willing to spend up to Rs.3 a napkin, while those in urban slums are willing to pay up Rs.5, as they know the importance of hygiene in their lives. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >He says the only issue is the high cost of transport of the napkins, which are being made elsewhere. </font></p><p align="justify"><font >&ldquo;The government has the option of using public transport, which will further bring down the cost.&rdquo; </font></p><p align="justify"><font ></font></p>'
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Centre mulls over scheme to provide free sanitary napkins to rural poor by Aarti Dhar

Likely to be rolled out gradually, in 3 to 6 months from now  Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women “Highly subsidised” sanitary napkins will be supplied to women above poverty line To boost female health and hygiene in rural India, the Union government is working on a scheme to provide women living below poverty line (BPL) with free sanitary napkins. The scheme, which will eventually supply “highly subsidised” sanitary napkins to women above the poverty line, is likely to be rolled out gradually, in three to six months from now. Once fully implemented, the scheme may touch the lives of 20 crore women. Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said on Saturday that the government intended to take care of the sexual and reproductive health needs of adolescent girls through a community-led programme for behaviour change by promoting the use of sanitary napkins. In the absence of affordable sanitary napkins, poor women are forced to use rags during menstrual cycle. Public health experts say this practice, and the resultant poor hygiene, are one of the reasons for the high incidence of reproductive tract infections in India. Ministry officials told The Hindu that the government was working on various models, including public-private partnership, to ensure that sanitary napkins were supplied free of cost to girls of BPL families, and at highly subsidised rates for others. The scheme has to be sustainable, with provisions for disposal, a major problem in urban areas. Several meetings have been held to give a final shape to the scheme, which will cover 200 million rural women, each using 100 sanitary napkins a year. The Tamil Nadu government has been running a scheme in some districts, where girl schools have sanitary napkin vending machines and incinerators. The napkins can either be bought or are provided free of cost to poor girls. The scheme is being implemented in collaboration with the UNICEF, non-governmental organisations and corporate houses. Haryana has also launched a similar scheme in some rural areas. Going by the expense involved — providing up to 200 million women with 100 sanitary napkins a year will cost the government a minimum of Rs.2,000 crore assuming a cost price of one rupee per napkin — the government is looking at the possibility of roping in sponsors, and of implementing the scheme in phases. The Centre also plans to use this huge subsidised demand to create low-cost supplies. “India has to learn to look after its girls better, if it pursues its inclusive agenda of social development.” Spandan Samaj Sewa, a Khandwa-based NGO, says the scheme will receive tremendous response. Prakash Michael of the Sewa, which makes sanitary napkins from old clothes and supplies them to women in the district, says rural women were willing to spend up to Rs.3 a napkin, while those in urban slums are willing to pay up Rs.5, as they know the importance of hygiene in their lives. He says the only issue is the high cost of transport of the napkins, which are being made elsewhere. “The government has the option of using public transport, which will further bring down the cost.”