MP Dhananjay Mahadik who led crusade for better menstrual hygiene

Dhananjay Mahadik fondly remembers the moment he entered Parliament for the first time. “It was a huge deal for me, sharing the same platform as stalwarts like LK Advani and Sonia Gandhi. I thought of the huge opportunity in front of me, and it was overwhelming,” he says.

The 47-year-old from the NCP hails from a humble farming family in Kolhapur. He made his mark in Parliament with a crusade for menstrual hygiene. “In this country, 87 per cent women don’t use any form of sanitary pads. The annual health budget is Rs 50,000 crore, and I asked why can we not distribute pads for girls in government schools. It garnered support of 80 MPs,” he says.

Mahadik’s performance helped him win the Sansad Ratna award three years in a row. He also thanks senior MPs for helping him out over the last five years. Looking back at his tenure, he says he thoroughly enjoyed his term. And he has reason to feel so. His demand to make sanitary napkins mandatory in public schools has now been implemented as government policy in 17 states. “That day, I understood the strength of a lone MP on the floor of the House,” he says. 

Dhananjay Mahadik (NCP), Kolhapur constituency

• Attendance: 72%
• No. of debates: 65
• No. of questions asked: 1,151
• Private Member’s Bills: 3

Also Read: First-time MPs called the shots at 16th Lok Sabha