Help Ahambhumika Clothe The Girl Child

Posted: August 18, 2011

Clothes. We decide that a lot of the stuff we have is not in fashion anymore. We buy new ones. Our wardrobes overflow with them. So much so that we need help on how to declutter our lives and give away the ones we don’t need. For many though, even the most basic clothes are not available. I’m talking about – Undergarments.

To be honest, I’ve never really given a thought to it, that the lack of underwear could be a problem for many women in our country. Even those of us who donate old clothes, obviously, can only donate outer wear. And it’s not just a question of money. Apparently, there is little awareness of the benefits of wearing underwear or the problems that can occur due to its absence.

What problems, you ask? I learnt from NGO Ahambhumika, which works with women and girls in Madhya Pradesh, that not wearing underwear leads to greater chance of vaginal infections. Plus, of course, it pretty much spoils the outer clothing and leads to a higher possibility of one’s coming into contact with any discharged bodily fluids. I’ve been following Ahambhumika’s activities for some time via Twitter, and it seems like they’re doing some good work. How can we help them?

Simple! They’re asking us to “donate new and clean cotton underwear for the girl child and young women”. If you live in an apartment or colony, perhaps you could even spread the word to a few others, and put together a parcel for them jointly.

Donations of underwear to be sent to: Subrat Goswami, Ahambhumika, C/o Archaeological Survey, 4th Floor, B- Block, G.T.B. Complex, T.T. Nagar, Bhopal-462003. If you need any clarifications, do mail them at ahambhumika@yahoo.co.in or contact them at Twitter.