Premier condom manufacturer HLL Lifecare Ltd along with the Thiruvananthapuram District Panchayat is set to install sanitary napkin vending machines, VENDIGO, and sanitary napkin incinerators in 150 government and aided schools in Thiruvananthapuram district.

Meant to help school children, these machines will dispense a pack of three sanitary napkins at the touch of a button after inserting coins. Napkin incinerators will be installed for safe and environment friendly disposal of used napkins.

HLL, which is under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, has by now installed around 700 such machines at various locations in the state.

HLL vending machines and incinerators are also approved under the Swachh Bharat Urban and Rural programmes of the Union Ministry of Urban Development and Ministry of Drinking Water & Sanitation. 

"Even though napkins are necessary for the health and hygiene of women, the usage in India is very low compared to many other developing countries. There are still a large number of village women in India who are hesitant to go to shops to buy napkins," said HLL Chairman and Managing Director R.P. Khandelwal.

HLL's not-for-profit organisation Hindustan Latex Family Planning Promotion Trust (HLFPPT) has been organising sanitary napkin awareness programmes across the country, besides supplying it for the Government of India's national programme.

HLL's Kanagala factory in Belgaum, Karnataka, produces almost 400 lakh napkins per year.

In addition to Kerala, similar machines are also installed in Delhi, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Haryana and West Bengal.