A two day Workshop on Health, Hygiene and Sanitation Awareness for Tribal Women sponsored by Vigyan Prasar, under DST was organized at Bhilwada tribal village in Lakhawali Panchayat of Badgaon Panchayat Samiti on Oct 5-6, 2016. The workshop was especially organized to mark the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti and Swach Bharat Abhiyan in the month of Oct 2016.

Various demonstrations and lectures were organized for generating awareness of women towards importance of cleanliness. The programme was organized in the school campus of the village. About 5o participants were there, comprising about 25 women from village, 15 Anganwadi and PHC women staff who will act as Master Trainer later and 10 adolescent girls from school.

The whole programme was in a participative mode, school girls were made to do a Mock Session on existing practices of cleaning in the house, outside house, personal hygiene maintained, water hygiene, food hygiene etc. Post mock session wrong practices used were highlighted and demonstrations of correct practices were given by team of organizers. Dr Hemu Rathore demonstrated the techniques of purifying water at household level and how to maintain hygiene right from fetching water till drinking it. Ms Charu Sharma from the team demonstrated the right way of handwashing with soap to avoid intake of bacteria through hands.

Ms Kusum Sharma focused on Food Hygiene and gave demonstration on how to treat vegetables and fruits before consumption that is, washing, cutting, cooking and consuming. Ms Shashi Chatur gave demonstration on how to make disinfectant ie phenyl at household level and use it in house cleaning. She also focused on safe disposal of household waste.

Dr P C Jain, a practicing physician gave a lecture on Importance of Good Health and effect of Hygiene and Sanitation on Health, on 5^th Oct 2016. As a doctor he focused on health issues resulting from lack of hygiene and sanitation inside and outside home. He specifically stressed on reasons why diseases like malaria and dengue are spread?

He also focused on importance of toilets and use by people, he cautioned women on adverse effects of open defecation on health.

On the second day a lecture cum demonstration on maintaining good hygiene of Reproductive organs by women was given by Ms Latika Vaishnav from Jatan Sansthan, a leading NGO of the city. She told women to come out of shyness and talk about such important parts of their body. She used very interesting techniques to break the silence of women on this issues. The whole scientific process of menstruation was explained to women in an interactive and simple way with drawings. They were taught to make a very hygienic cloth sanitary napkin and were taught to use it instead of traditional practice. Dr Gayatri Tiwari emphasized that women should learn to communicate, it’s a very important attribute that women must learn to speak.

The Guest for closing ceremony was Prof Shashi Jain, Dean College of Home Science, Udaipur. She in her closing remarks highlighted importance of nutritive food during menstruation period. Ms Madhu Sharma, the school principal was also present on the occasion. She distributed toolkits in the culmination. The toolkit contained a sanitary napkin, nail cutter, soap, toothpaste, comb, Dettol, water strainer, fitkari to filter water, long handled ladle to take water from pitcher, tap water filter, dustbin, phenyl, folders/booklets/posters on hygiene and sanitation.

Information provided by Dr Suman Singh, Professor and Head of Organising Committee