Sanitary¹ pads are now tax-free in India.

 

卫生巾在印度免税了。

 

The Indian government has decided² to scrap³ a controversial 12% tax on the feminine hygiene⁴ products, it announced late Saturday, marking a victory for campaigners who have lobbied against the tax for more than a year.

 

"[The country's] sisters and mothers will be happy to hear that sanitary pads have been given a 100% exemption⁵ and brought down to a tax rate of zero," the country's acting⁶ finance minister Piyush Goyal told reporters. "Now there will be no [tax] on sanitary pads."

 

Activists⁷ say removing the tax on pads tackles one of the biggest barriers to education for girls, who are often forced to stay at home due to a lack of access to clean hygiene products, while also facing stigma⁸ and a lack of toilets in schools.

 

Periods are among the leading factors for girls to drop out of school in India, where four out of five women and girls are estimated by campaigners to have no access to sanitary pads.

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