MetLife Foundation–Supported  program (2023-2024) ‘Distribution of Undergarments and Organizing Health Check Up Camps for the Adolescent Girls of Baghmundih CD Block, Purulia, West Bengal’.

Cumulative Achievements (2023–2024)                                                         

  • 12,024 sanitary napkins distributed
  • 17,756 undergarments (Panty) distributed to 4,439 girls
  • 46 Health Check-up Camps conducted (15 in 2023
  • 2,285 adolescent girls received medical consultation and treatment
  • 91 Peer Educators trained, who further reached over 1,000 community members

Program Interventions

  • Distribution of sanitary napkins and essential undergarments
  • Regular health check-up camps with gynaecologists, nurses, and pharmacists
  • Awareness sessions addressing stigma, hygiene practices, and reproductive health
  • Peer educator training to ensure community-level sustainability

Impact

  • Significant reduction in unhygienic practices
  • Early diagnosis of anaemia and menstrual disorders
  • Improved confidence and school attendance among tribal girls
  • Emergence of adolescent girls as community change-makers

Key Challenges

  • Remote, hilly geography limiting access
  • Cultural taboos surrounding menstruation
  • Economic hardship restricting access to hygiene products
  • Irregular access to government health services

Despite these barriers, the initiative has strengthened dignity, health awareness, and leadership among tribal adolescent girls—ensuring that menstrual health is no longer a silent struggle but a pathway to empowerment in one of West Bengal’s most underserved regions.

This program stands as a model of how targeted, community-driven intervention can transform health outcomes and restore confidence among marginalized adolescent girls.