In a first instance of gender-sensitive budgeting, the government has sanctioned exclusive funds to the countrys largest paramilitary force CRPF to procure and install over 500 sanitary pad dispensers and incinerators for its women personnel in combat.IPS officer Renuka Mishra, currently an additional director general (ADG) in her cadre state of Uttar Pradesh, had conducted a study a few years back and it was the first that brought out the issues of health, privacy and challenges being faced by women personnel at workplace.The conference was organised by the Home Ministry here.The paramilitary force last week unveiled the countrys first prototype of a body protector for women personnel which it has jointly developed with the Defence Research and Development Organisation.Women personnel had begun digging a pit in their units to dispose of used sanitary pads, the study found.The call for having gender sensitive budgeting and creating an enabling environment for women in khaki was first mooted during the National Conference for women in Police in 2016..It is expected that this first of its kind approval will also be granted to other forces under the command of the Ministry of Home Affairs, said the official, who did not wish to be named.

The cost of one sanitary pad vending machine is estimated to be about Rs 2,50,000, a burning machine about Rs 40,000 and a cloth drying stand Rs 3,000, the Home Ministry order said.The sanctioned funds, which were authorised by the Union Home Ministry, stands at Rs 2,10,69, 000, as per an order, a copy of which is with PTI.The Central Reserve Police Force, with a strength of over 3 lakh personnel, has its women personnel deployed all over the country, including in naxal violence affected and the militancy grid in Jammu and Kashmir.The expenditure will be met from the "approved budget grant" of the force, it said.It found they also faced difficulty to procure sanitary pads while on duty and it was equally difficult for them to dispose them off as men sweepers were reluctant to clean women toilets and clean the trash.The officer, then an inspector general with border guarding force Sashastra Seema Bal at its headquarters here, spoke to a number of women, mainly in constabulary ranks, in state police forces and Central Armed Police Forces.Funds have been sanctioned to procure a total of 288 pad vending machines and as many incinerators to scientifically dispose used sanitary napkins. Clothes remained damp as they did not dry due to lack of sunlight, and led to urinary tract infections in women," Mishra said welcoming the latest sanction of cloth drying racks to the CRPF."

The entire effort of the study and the national conference on women in police was to create a conducive and unobtrusive work environment for women personnel who are giving their best despite all the problems they face," she said.The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) has also been authorised to purchase 783 steel frame stands for drying clothes for all its six mahila battalions, 15 special anti-riot units of the Rapid Action Force and training institutions.The survey found that while women personnel go on long spells of no water to avoid urination, it was also hard for them to find a proper place to wash their clothes and even to dry their undergarments while on the job."The women personnel said it was difficult for them to dry their inner wear due to lack of facilities."The women troops are deployed across the country for rendering law and order duties, anti-naxal operations and other operational tasks that are rendered by men personnel," CRPF spokesperson Deputy Inspector General Moses Dhinakaran told the news agency."The sanction will help the force in ensuring better living and operating conditions for the over 8,000 women personnel who are in combat.The dispensers and incinerators, which destroys used pads scientifically, will be installed soon care label satin ribbon for sale and the CRPF has moved for this special gender sensitive budget allowance last year, a senior official said.

Still, a few shopkeepers are telling us that the items are expensive for them..Hence, the products are available at discounted prices."Another manufacturer, Siddhesh Dalvi from Supreme Industries Lim-ited, Chakala, Andheri east, too, claimed that there had been no additional calls from new shopkeepers since the ban was enforced.Mumbai: The demand for cloth and jute bags continues to be low despite the ban on plastic, with manufacturers of these items stating that not many retailers have approached them for supplies.

The ban has just come into force, so we are expecting the demand to increase in the coming days.Chetan Mehta from Shreeji Enterprises, Char-kop, Kandivali, said, "There has been no increase in the demand for jute and cotton bags after the plastic ban.Some shopkeepers have been reluctant to place orders for jute and cotton bags because of prohibitive prices. The manufacturers further said that while some shops from the list provided by the BMC were calling them, they were recycle ribbon Manufacturers not placing orders citing unaffordable prices. We have got calls from a few new shops after the BMC uploaded the list of manufacturers on its official website. A Tardeo manufacturer of these items said, "We are manufacturing jute bags and ARECA disposable products, so we usually deal in wholesale. Penalties have been slapped on around 132 premises which include food outlets like Burger King, McDonald’s and Starbucks among others."Meanwhile, the BMC has collected fines to the tune of `660,000 during the first three days of the plastic ban.