Most in India continue to use a sanitary pad during their menstrual cycle, unaware of its ecological impact. The country discards over 12 billion sanitary napkins annually, which land up at landfills, clogs our sewerage system, water bodies and fields, therefore posing colossal environmental risks
The disposal of sanitary pads in India is causing an environmental crisis due to their plastic content and lack of proper waste management. Approximately 121 million Indian women use sanitary napkins, resulting in 12.3 billion napkins and 113,000 tons of waste annually. The scarcity of incinerators and the inadequacy of small-scale incinerators contribute to the problem.
Though some startups offer innovative solutions like turning used pads into paper, most end up in landfills where waste pickers have to manually sort .