Project Qadira: A step towards a better future
The children of the Dream Girl Foundation holding Qadira's kits
By Mahima Pandey
ProjectQadira is Bennett's entrepreneurial effort to bridge the gap between women in need and their right to safe and healthy menstruation. This project under Enactus Bennett University is a brainchild of Drishti Makhijani , a second year BBA student.
Drishti joined Enactus as a college fresher and has now taken it to a place where the project is ready to move out of EnactusBennett University into an independent startup. Anshul Kaul, a final year BBA student and the former President of the Enactus Bennett University has been a constant support to Drishti in her journey. He is also the co-founder of the startup.
What is Project Qadira?
With the tagline ‘Bleed with Pride’, this project aims to provide universal access to safe, affordable and environment -friendly menstrual hygiene products to all menstruators while building an inclusive community.
To achieve this, the team conducts distribution drives in collaboration with different organizations across the country. These drives are combined with educational sessions to sensitize all genders comfortable with the concept of menstruation. The team also uses this platform to encourage people to use their product which is reusable cloth pads.
Qadira’s cloth pad is one of the cheapest products in the market today. These pads have a shelf-life of upto a year which means that once bought these pads can be washed and reused for a year, making it a viable option for everyone especially, girls and women in rural areas.
Recently two visits, one to the slums of Vasant Kunj and the other to the Dream Girl Foundation in Delhi were conducted wherein the team educated women and children respectively. Safe periods and how using reusable, washable cloth pads instead of an expensive plastic one is not only cost-effective but is also safer for the environment were some of the topics discussed.
Drishti and Anshul shared the journey of the project and their experiences with us.
How did Project Qadira start?
A WaterAid report highlights that poor access to menstrual hygiene is the 5th biggest killer of women in the world. Similarly, according to Dasra , a non-profit organization in Mumbai, 23million girls drop out of school annually due to lack of proper menstrual hygiene management facilities. Women in rural areas or women from the economically-weaker sections of the society make large share of these number. Drishti understood the severity of this issue after a visit to my house help's home and that led to the inception of the idea of Project Qadira.
My house help’s story is one among many where either the menstruators have access to low-grade or no menstrual hygiene products and resort to using - an old cloth, hay, newspaper etc. It is saddening how the silence over a deeply rooted taboo has resulted in absurd myth-making: menstruators are impure, filth, sick. This brings our country's morals to their knee. Situation of these women in need has worsened due to the Covid19 outbreak and it came to me as a huge relief when I was provided with the opportunity of starting something that stood up for the issue.
Starting Qadira as a college fresher was more fun than a challenge for Drishti. Team meetings have now become her place of solace or a place where she finds a lot of peace. Qadira started off as sticky notes on her desk about a year ago and now she feels blessed to have a wonderful team where each and every person treats the project as their own baby.
What are the challenges that the team faced?
Initially, the lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic posed as a major challenge for the team as it restricted them from doing their essential ground work and research but now, with the relaxation in the Covid-19 protocols and re-opening of the university, the main challenge seems to be the transition of the project from a fully-online project to an offline or hybrid one.
The support they got from different organizations that came forward to help their cause and an inspiring team-spirit helped them tackle these issues to some extent. However, Anshul has a different take on the same. He believes that the pandemic never stopped the team from functioning at full potential.
He agrees that the physical bond of the team is missing but he also highlights that the online bonding sessions, numerous hours of calls and the dedication to take the project to newer heights has always helped the team come close. Sitting on Late night calls, sharing personal experiences and getting to know each other helps the team bond.
What is the significance of the project for the University?
The Project obviously is an entrepreneurial initiative to build a better nation, a better world but it is also a reflection of Bennett University doing its bit for the society and the environment. Anshul establishes that the efforts of the students to bring about the change, is also an effort to make the supportive Bennett community proud.
The success of the project indeed reflects upon Bennett community’s approach towards nurturing young minds and giving them the right push towards such entrepreneurial arenas.
Moreover, Enactus Bennett University has several other projects-in-progress and all of these projects aim to abide by theUnited Nations ’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in order to build a better, safer future for everyone.
Join exciting programmes offered by Bennett University
Project
Drishti joined Enactus as a college fresher and has now taken it to a place where the project is ready to move out of Enactus
What is Project Qadira?
With the tagline ‘Bleed with Pride’, this project aims to provide universal access to safe, affordable and environment -friendly menstrual hygiene products to all menstruators while building an inclusive community.
To achieve this, the team conducts distribution drives in collaboration with different organizations across the country. These drives are combined with educational sessions to sensitize all genders comfortable with the concept of menstruation. The team also uses this platform to encourage people to use their product which is reusable cloth pads.
Qadira’s cloth pad is one of the cheapest products in the market today. These pads have a shelf-life of upto a year which means that once bought these pads can be washed and reused for a year, making it a viable option for everyone especially, girls and women in rural areas.
Recently two visits, one to the slums of Vasant Kunj and the other to the Dream Girl Foundation in Delhi were conducted wherein the team educated women and children respectively. Safe periods and how using reusable, washable cloth pads instead of an expensive plastic one is not only cost-effective but is also safer for the environment were some of the topics discussed.
Drishti and Anshul shared the journey of the project and their experiences with us.
How did Project Qadira start?
A WaterAid report highlights that poor access to menstrual hygiene is the 5th biggest killer of women in the world. Similarly, according to Dasra , a non-profit organization in Mumbai, 23million girls drop out of school annually due to lack of proper menstrual hygiene management facilities. Women in rural areas or women from the economically-weaker sections of the society make large share of these number. Drishti understood the severity of this issue after a visit to my house help's home and that led to the inception of the idea of Project Qadira.
My house help’s story is one among many where either the menstruators have access to low-grade or no menstrual hygiene products and resort to using - an old cloth, hay, newspaper etc. It is saddening how the silence over a deeply rooted taboo has resulted in absurd myth-making: menstruators are impure, filth, sick. This brings our country's morals to their knee. Situation of these women in need has worsened due to the Covid19 outbreak and it came to me as a huge relief when I was provided with the opportunity of starting something that stood up for the issue.
Starting Qadira as a college fresher was more fun than a challenge for Drishti. Team meetings have now become her place of solace or a place where she finds a lot of peace. Qadira started off as sticky notes on her desk about a year ago and now she feels blessed to have a wonderful team where each and every person treats the project as their own baby.
What are the challenges that the team faced?
Initially, the lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic posed as a major challenge for the team as it restricted them from doing their essential ground work and research but now, with the relaxation in the Covid-19 protocols and re-opening of the university, the main challenge seems to be the transition of the project from a fully-online project to an offline or hybrid one.
The support they got from different organizations that came forward to help their cause and an inspiring team-spirit helped them tackle these issues to some extent. However, Anshul has a different take on the same. He believes that the pandemic never stopped the team from functioning at full potential.
He agrees that the physical bond of the team is missing but he also highlights that the online bonding sessions, numerous hours of calls and the dedication to take the project to newer heights has always helped the team come close. Sitting on Late night calls, sharing personal experiences and getting to know each other helps the team bond.
What is the significance of the project for the University?
The Project obviously is an entrepreneurial initiative to build a better nation, a better world but it is also a reflection of Bennett University doing its bit for the society and the environment. Anshul establishes that the efforts of the students to bring about the change, is also an effort to make the supportive Bennett community proud.
The success of the project indeed reflects upon Bennett community’s approach towards nurturing young minds and giving them the right push towards such entrepreneurial arenas.
Moreover, Enactus Bennett University has several other projects-in-progress and all of these projects aim to abide by the
Join exciting programmes offered by Bennett University
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