SILIGURI, India "My daughters shall not lead my life," said Binita, shredding pine wood pulp with her fingers. She meant two very different yet, for her, related things: They will not be driven into prostitution, and they will enjoy better feminine hygiene.
Binita, the mother of three school-age daughters, recently gave up plying her trade in Kolkata's Kalighat red-light district after more than 15 years. She is one of 12 women engaged by New Light, a local nongovernmental organization, to make compostable sanitary pads under the brand name Anandi as part of a project called Mukti, meaning "liberation."
