The State Government will install 8,000 sanitary napkin pad vending machines 'Meri Saheli' across all districts to make them available in public places for easy access, said the Women Empowerment and Child Development (WECD) minister Rekha Arya on the occasion of Menstrual Hygiene Day on Sunday. She said that the government is making consistent efforts to eliminate the hesitation of young girls and women towards menstruation and raise awareness about menstrual hygiene and health awareness in general. She said that menstruation is a natural phenomenon and children should be made aware of this to ensure they do not get wrong information about it and get misguided on the topic by believing in taboos associated with it. 

She said that though times are changing and people are more aware of menstrual health and associated facts but many still believe in taboos and consistent efforts are being made to raise awareness among the maximum number of people. The WECD minister stated this during her address at an event in Dehradun held on the occasion of Menstrual Hygiene Day. Many girls and women participated in the event interacted with health experts and asked questions about menstrual health. Arya said that these 8,000 vending machines will be installed at places like schools, colleges, Anganwadi centres, and hospitals among other public places where young girls and women can access them easily. They will get two sanitary pads from this vending machine for only Rs five. "Many teenage girls and women still use clothes during menstruation that can potentially cause an infection and other health issues. These vending machines will provide access to sanitary pads to women at a cheap rate without compromising their menstrual hygiene," added Arya. Cabinet minister Ganesh Joshi was also present at the event. He also appreciated the government's initiative of installing vending machines to give women easy access to sanitary napkins. He also said that there is still a need to raise awareness of menstrual hygiene as many still hesitate to talk about it in various parts of the State.