NEW DELHI:
The Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) has taken the lead in integrating culture into the Swachh Bharat initiative with a week-long campaign that includes an awareness exhibition and a lecture serie
s by Arunachalam Muruganantham, the social entrepreneur hailed for bringing the issue of women’s menstrual hygiene in India to the mainstream.
The ‘Swachh Srishti’ event will be inaugurated on October 1 and the exhibition curated by Bageshwar Jha in collaboration with Sulabh International will showcase the significance of health and hygiene in contemporary times. The ‘Swachhta’ exhibition at the IGNCA will be open to the public on all days from 10 am to 6 pm from October 3-8.
On Monday, October 3, the Centre will host a talk by the Padmashri awardee Muruganantham, the inventor of the low-cost sanitary pad making mini-machine which has revolutionized the concept of menstrual hygiene in rural India.
Often dubbed as India’s ‘Menstrual Man’, a moniker he got from the prize-winning documentary made on his achievements, Muruganantham has been marketing his machines across India, additionally helping thousands of rural women earn a living by manufacturing the affordable sanitary pads. He is currently planning to expand the production of these machines to 106 nations.
In a separate lecture on Wednesday, October 5, Dr Ram Autar will share the ideas of ‘Swachhta’ as described in ancient literature.
The IGNCA will, over the week, also organize a painting competition for school students (Oct 4) on the theme of cleanliness, a two-day cartoon workshop (Oct 6-7) by Raipur-based artist
Triambak Sharma, and a fashion show by students of the Sulabh Sanitation Club.
