Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis And Akshay Kumar Launch Asmita Yojana Scheme That Will Provide Affordable Sanitary Pads To Women Of Maharashtra

New Delhi: On the occasion of International Women’s Day on Thursday, Maharashtra government kick-started its nation-wide Ashmita Yojana under which sanitary napkins – the basic women necessity will be provided to women of the state at a discounted price. Rural school girls can avail sanitary napkin packet for just Rs. 5 while rural women can get it at a subsidised rate of ₹ 24 and ₹ 29. The official launch of the scheme happened in the presence of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, actor Akshay Kumar and Minister for Rural Development, Women and Child Development of Maharashtra, Pankaja Gopinath Munde. Speaking at the launch event organised by the Rural Development and Panchayati Raj department, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said,

Asmita scheme will bring a social transformation. With the targeted efforts and digital base, I am confident that not a single beneficiary would be left deprived under the scheme. This scheme will be the guiding scheme for the entire nation.

Also Read: Menstrual Hygiene As The Focus, Maharashtra Works Towards Awareness And Access To Sanitary Napkins For Every Woman

Lauding the efforts of Maharashtra government to launch this scheme, actor Akshay Kumar said,

Congrats to the Maharashtra Government & Hon. CM @Dev_Fadnavis ji & @Pankajamunde ji for the launch of #Asmita scheme on #WomensDay to make sanitary pads available to girls & women from rural areas at very subsidized rates.

He further asked his fans to contribute towards the cause and sponsor sanitary napkins for rural girls.

The actor himself has decided to bear the cost of sanitary napkins for 10,000 girls for next one year. Earlier, during the launch of web and mobile portal of Ashmita Yojana scheme in a bid to cater more and more women of the state, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had decided to sponsor sanitary napkins for 50 girls for the next 12 months, whereas Pankaja Gopinath Munde has decided to do the same for 151 girls for the next 12 months.

A total of Rs. 3 crore has been allotted for the scheme which is being implemented by the Rural Development Department under the Maharashtra State Rural Jivonnati Campaign with the Additional Director of Family Welfare Department functioning as the Nodal Officer. Through the scheme, girls and women of 36 districts of the state will be benefitted.

For effective implementation of the entire scheme, the state government has also appointed “Umed’- the Maharashtra State Rural Livelihood Mission, as a nodal agency. The organisation will provide help in giving Asmita Cards to the beneficiary girls, and will also ensure that the Self Help Groups (SHGs) are trained properly to carry the task of supplying these sanitary pads to the women and girls in the state and thereby are helping government spread education on following good menstrual hygiene.

Also Read: From Centre’s Biodegradable Sanitary Napkins To Reduced Prices Of Pads In Andhra Pradesh, Menstrual Hygiene Finds Priority On International Women’s Day