About Rags-to-Pads

Most of the information on this page comes from the proposal written by Pardada Pardadi and from our discussions with Renuka, a member of the organization. You can download the proposal (DOC) or contact Renuka for more information.

Pardada Pardadi is registered as a non-profit organization under Society's Registration Act and FCRA for Foreign Contributions. It is registered in the US under 501(c)(3) for tax exemption there.

What's the current situation?

According to Pardada Pardadi, most rural Indian women and girls catch numerous vaginal infections after attaining puberty. The reason is because they use dirty or unsanitized cloth during menstruation -- because they cannot afford hygienically-prepared sanitary pads.

Pardada Pardadi is in Anupshahr block of Bulandshahr District in Uttar Pradesh. According to Renuka, Bulandshahar is "infamous for crime and entirely dependent on agriculture." Although it is only one-hundred-and-thirty kilometers from Delhi, the area lags far behind the capitol in terms of economic and social development. There are no sources for employment. It is a patriarchal society in which gender disparities are very prevalent. Forty thousands families in the area live below the poverty line. With such poverty and such patriarchy, women's health often takes a backseat to basic issues of providing food and shelter.

How is Pardada Pardadi helping?

Pardada Pardadi runs a school for girls from nursery-school age through twelfth grade. The school was started in 2000 with forty-five students. Now it has a thousand. Pardada Pardadi's vision is to be a facilitator in creating a society where women have equal share in the continual growth of the nation. Pardada Pardadi plans to enroll two hundred new girls every year and to create social and economic empowerment through value-based and skill-based training.

Pardada Pardadi provides free education, books, bicycles, food, uniforms and vocational training (in making home furnishings). Pardada Pardadi spends sixty rupees ($1.50) per day per child. Out of this sixty rupees, ten rupees ($.25 cents) is deposited into a student's account on the basis of her attendance; by the time girl passes twelfth grade, she will have 35-40 thousand rupees (up to a thousand dollars) in her account. This will make her one of the wealthiest people in her village, and be enough to lift her and her family out of the poverty cycle.

Pardada Pardadi's aim is to train its students to become socially and economically independent. To achieve this aim, it is very important to have good health. For the physical well-being of the students, Pardada Pardadi organizes health check-ups and provides a nutritious diet.

Goals of the sanitary napkin project ("Rags-to-Pads")

This project has four goals:

1. To train students about health and hygiene issues related to menstruation.
2. To provide hygienic sanitary pads
3. To create income-generating activity for two Pardada Pardadi graduates.
4. To minimize the incidence of vaginal infections.

What's more, this project will address issues around:

1. Women Empowerment
2. Income Generation
3. Literacy/Education/Awareness
4. Health/Preventative Care

What will happen with your donation?

Pardada Pardadi intends to make this project self-sustaining in a period of one year. It will train two of its graduates in both the technology of making sanitary pads and the philosophy of marketing and running a business. Pardada Pardadi will purchase the machine and the raw materials, and hire the graduates for one year at a salary of two thousand rupees ($50) per month.

These women will sell pads at approximately twenty-five rupees ($.63 cents) per pack of ten. This will include a profit margin of three-to-five rupees per pack. These graduates will have eager customers at the Pardada Pardadi School itself -- approximately four hundred girls of menstruation age. And they will sell to other girls and women in the villages. This project is intended to become sustainable in one year.

If you have any more questions, please read the FAQ. Or post them on our blog, our Facebook group or email us. To donate, please click the links below.