There are approximately 300 million menstruating women in India, accounting for nearly 30 percent of the country’s population. Statistics evidence that up to 23 million women drop out of school every year when they start menstruation. The taboo and stigma surrounding the same strengthen the preexisting gender disparity in India which, is reflected in the lack of proper menstrual hygiene management facilities, logical awareness, and availability. With barely any menstruation normalization in India, it is not surprising that only less than 20% of women use sanitary pads. Girls resort to using strips of cloth and homemade solutions like socks filled with sand and ashes to absorb their menstrual flow. However, these processes are unhygienic and insanitary, thereby increasing the chances of infection. Research states that nearly 60,000 cervical cancer deaths are reported every year in India, out of which two-thirds, or 40,000, cases are due to poor menstrual health. Some other issues from lack of menstrual hygiene are urogenital, yeast, fungal, and urinary tract infections, all of which are deadly and severely impact health. Besides, there also exists the problem of safe and sustainable menstrual waste disposable. Project Noori aims to alleviate the plights by providing underprivileged women with basic hygiene/menstrual kits. Giving access to these kits and educating them about menstrual health while also normalizing the same through awareness is imperative to achieve success in this area so that women do not feel ashamed and ostracized by normal bodily functions.
