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A Girl’s Quest to Empower Her Hostel Inmates with Menstrual Products

Written By: Infano
March 8, 2021
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Read how this woman did her bit towards her school and hostel by donating menstrual hygiene products to the inmates with Team Infano.

I have a help, Mary who has been working at my home since the past 10 years. She is like family to me – has helped me maintain the well-being of my family, has helped me through my difficult times when my family members were sick, been a support when I had to leave my kids at home for outstation work assignments, has helped raise my kids with me.

We have grown up with each other… literally. She comes from a humble background, has a husband who has been addicted to alcohol for years now and three daughters. I have seen her work hard, literally willing to do anything to make things work for the family.  I now see her daughters all grown up, taken up jobs and doing well in life. I feel a sense of pride when I talk about Mary and the independent daughters she has raised.

Today, I want to tell you the story of her youngest daughter, Soumya. When Soumya was young, things were really tough financially at home. Her elder siblings were studying well and it was getting increasingly difficult for Mary to make ends meet. She was at a stage when she felt that it would be even difficult to afford a school for Soumya. She heard about a girls’ hostel and school run by a few Christian nuns and approached them for Soumya’s schooling. They took her in. Soumya was just 6 years old then.

Once she joined school, Soumya was allowed to go home to her family only three times a year, and as a kid it was difficult to accept that. She had to adjust living with girls of different age groups and from varied socio-economic groups. It was tough for a six-year-old. Discipline was utmost important, helping in day-to-day chores of the hostel was a given, no reason was good enough to skip school, prayers or physical exercise. It all seemed unnecessary at that point, it all seemed way too strict. Soumya studied there till grade 10 and came out as a confident girl ready to take on life. The school brought a new perspective in Soumya’s life.

Soumya is now doing her graduation and has also taken up a part-time job. This Women’s Day, when she came to know about the “I Challenge to Change” campaign by Infano, she felt that she is ready to take up a challenge in life. She remembered her growing years in the hostel – the discomfort of periods every month, the lack of menstrual knowledge, the scarcity of menstrual hygiene products, missing someone to talk to – someone who could give her some explanations as to why, how, and when. Soumya wanted to do something for the menstrual hygiene of the students of the hostel.

Team Infano with Soumya, visited the hostel, spent time with the kids and the Sisters in-charge there. The hostel was well managed, even in these difficult COVID times. Though initially reserved, shy, and giggly, when we mentioned periods, the girls slowly opened up. The conversation touched upon several topics like menstrual cramps, the importance of hygiene, various period products, biodegradable organic products like the period products from PeeSafe (after all, the environment is our responsibility too!). It made the Infano team realize that there is still so much more that we need to spread the word about menstruation. We are really happy that youngsters like Soumya actually want to make a change in the lives of young girls. It’s a start for her – beginning with the place that helped her become what she is.

This rather simple real-life story has inspiring tales of strong women embedded in it – the story of Mary who struggled all her life but made sure she raised strong, capable daughters, the story of the Sisters at the hostel who have selflessly devoted their life to the upliftment of young girls and of young Soumya, who has a raring desire to do whatever she can to give a better life to the less privileged young girls.

We can draw inspiration from these women to do whatever we can in our capacity, big or small, to make a change because small changes put together can make a big difference in the future. Building a strong, independent women community is our hope and dream.

#IChallengetoChange#IWD2021#menstruation#periodproducts#periods#Strongwomen#womenempowerment#womensday

Infano

Infano is a platform that aims to impact every facet of a woman's life - health, career, motherhood, lifestyle, and much more. We are a team of like-minded individuals who wish to be a support to women from all walks of life and in everything they do. Our aim, through our posts and articles, is to bring to light the issues and problems that women face in their day-to-day life, to try and make their life a little easier and a little better, provide the latest news updates of women around the world, and to highlight their big and small achievements. We celebrate womanhood each and every day.

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Indian Air Force Day: Meet The Women Officers Who Created A History In The IAF!

Written By: Sonali
October 8, 2020 | 01:45 PM |
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India celebrates October 8 as Indian Air Force Day to mark the foundation day of the Air Force. Indian Air Force was established in 1932 and currently ranks fourth amongst the air forces of the world.

While the Indian Air Force is filled with the glory of war and male officers who brought the nation utmost pride and respect, the recent induction of women officers in the IAF has also witnessed some of the priceless golden moments.

On the 88th foundation day of Indian Air Force, here’s a quick bite on the female officers of the IAF who would go deep down in history and be remembered as the source of inspiration and pride.

Air Marshal Padmavathy Bandopadhyay, PVSM, AVSM, VSM

Source

She is the first female Air Marshal of the Indian Air Force. She is also the first woman officer to complete her Defence Service Staff College course in 1978. Besides this, she is also the first woman officer to be promoted to the rank of Air Vice Marshal, the first woman to conduct scientific research at the North Pole and first woman officer to become an aviation medicine specialist.

Flight Lieutenant Nivedita Choudhary

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She is the first woman officer from the Indian Air Force to summit Mount Everest and the first woman from Rajasthan to do so. Her teammates, Squadron Leader Nirupama Pandey and Flight Lieutenant Rajika Sharma achieved this feat five days later.

Squadron Leader Deepika Misra

Source

She is the first woman aerobatics pilot of IAF. The Indian Air Force trained her for Sarang, the helicopter aerobatic team. She was one of the firsts to be inducted into the indigenous Advanced Light Helicopter squad.

Flight Lieutenant Gunjan Saxena

Source

She is the first woman IAF officer to fly in a combat zone during the Kargil War. She is also one of 25 young women who formed the first batch of women IAF trainee pilots. She is the first woman officer awarded with the Shaurya Vir Award.

Flight Lieutenant Harita Kaur Deol

Source

She is the first female officer in the Indian Air Force to fly without a co-pilot. She achieved this feat at a young age of 22 and created history by soaring at the height of 10,000 ft.

Flight Lieutenant Avani Chaturvedi

Source

She is the first woman officer from the Indian Armed Forces to fly a supersonic jet fighter all alone. She is also the first woman combat pilot along with two of her cohorts, Mohana Singh Jitarwal, and Bhawana Kanth.

Flight Lieutenant Mohana Singh Jitarwal

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She is the first woman fighter pilot from the Indian Armed Forces to fly on a Hawk advanced jet aircraft during the daytime. She created history by qualifying to undertake such missions.

Flight Lieutenant Bhawana Kanth

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She is the first woman fighter pilot from the Indian Armed Forces who is capable of undertaking any mission during the daytime. She is also the second woman pilot of Indian Air Force to fly solo in a fighter aircraft.

Wing Commander Shaliza Dhami 

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She is the first female officer of IAF to become a Flight Commander of a flying unit. She is also the first woman flying instructor of IAF and the first woman to get a permanent commission of the flying branch.

Other noteworthy women in Indian Air Force’ history:

Flight Lieutenant Parul Bharadwaj (Captain), Flying Officer Aman Nidhi (Co-Pilot) and Flight Lieutenant Hina Jaiswal (Flight Engineer) are the country’s first ‘All Women Crew’ to fly a medium-lift helicopter.

Source

Flight Lieutenant Parul Bharadwaj is also the first woman to fly the Mi-17 V5 helicopter.

Flying Officer Aman Nidhi is the first woman IAF pilot from Jharkhand.

Flight Lieutenant Hina Jaiswal is the first woman flight engineer of the Indian Air Force.

Sub Lieutenant Shivangi Singh is the first woman Indian naval pilot and first woman officer set to fly a Rafale fighter jet in India.

Stay tuned to know more about iconic women who shaped Indian history and the ones who are shaping it! #InfanoWomen #IndianAirForceDay

IAFindian air forceinfanowomenwomenwomen empowermentwomen in indiawomen power

Sonali

A 'non-9-5 desk job' ambivert geek who chooses her own audience, Sonali loves sharing stories and finding the corners where humanity still exists! She believes that every individual's story is unique and special. She loves writing about the untouched and unspoken segments of society. When not writing, you can find her listening to someone's stories or playing with dogs. Sonali values mental health and encourages people to speak their heart out!

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