Odisha’s ‘Khushi’ turns into health hazard as hundreds of sanitary napkins rot in Bhadrak school

Presenting a scene of alleged gross negligence and loss of lakhs of funds to the state exchequer, hundreds of sanitary napkins, once meant to bring comfort and dignity to adolescent girls under the state’s ‘Khushi’ scheme, now lie scattered and left to rot across various distribution centres in Odisha.

Sources visited one such site at the Government Upper Primary School in Bankasahi of Bhadrak, where countless numbers of unused sanitary napkin packets lay across classrooms, corridors, and even the roof of the school, turning the premises into an unauthorised dump yard.

The scheme, launched in 2018 by the then-BJD government, was intended to provide free sanitary napkins to girl students from Class 6 to 12. Ironically, it was meant to spread 'Khushi' ('happiness'), but instead ended up becoming a source of a looming health crisis for nearby residents.

Several Allegations and Concerns:

“Stacks of sanitary napkins worth lakhs of rupees are rotting away, contaminating the school environment and creating health hazards. I have noticed that no authority is taking any measures to clean up the place, which is further aggravating the situation,” said Jagabandhu Behera, a local resident.

Further, local residents also alleged that a major cause of these napkins going to waste was their poor quality and lack of awareness. “The sanitary napkins that were received here were almost of no use, so neither the teachers nor the women of the region accepted them. However, the current government should account for and hold the people responsible for such a loss,” said Chaitani Khillar, a Bhadrak localite.

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Officials Blame Each Other

The issue has sparked a blame game between the education and health departments. Bhadrak Block Education Officer Chakradhar Mallik pointed fingers at the health department, claiming that more napkins than required were supplied, leading to wastage.

“We found the place covered in sanitary napkins, with miscreants having stolen the cardboard boxes. We have informed the health department, and they have assured us to dispose of it,” he said.

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In contrast, Sudhanshu Sekhar Bala, Bhadrak’s Chief District Medical Officer, countered that the fault lay in non-distribution.

“The concerned officials will have to explain to us in writing why the napkins were never distributed,”  he stated, adding that the District Education Officer would be informed and questioned.

(Reported by Partha Sarathi Nayak)