This article has been sponsored by Infosys Foundation. 

In 2018, mechanical engineering student Ajinkya Dhariya received an excellent opportunity to submit his business idea at a competition conducted by the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC). 

The Pune resident decided to use this platform to pitch his sustainable idea of tackling and disposing of sanitary waste. The idea not only received applause and acclaim, but Ajinkya’s paper, which highlighted his thoughts and solutions on the matter, went on to be featured among the top 10 entries. 

Fuelled by a new zeal, Ajinkya decided to accelerate the idea into a full-fledged venture, and a few months later, Pad Care labs was born. The eco-friendly sanitary waste disposal system based in Pune was set up with a novel idea — converting sanitary pads into cellulose and plastic pellets.

That same year, he received another boost in the form of the Infosys Foundation’s Aarohan Social Innovation Awards, where he won a funding of Rs 30 lakh.  

“The funding helped me take my idea and product to the market,” says Ajinkya, adding that they were able to deploy 10 conversion units across Pune. “Before Aarohan, I was a tech geek working on small projects, but the funding escalated things.” 

The entrepreneur notes that today, their system disposes of 1.5 metric tonnes of pads per day and saves 2 lakh kg of........

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