Anganwadi workers protest outside Sekhon’s residence

Nikhila Pant Dhawan

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, November 7

Members of the All Punjab Anganwadi Workers’ Union today staged a protest against the government over their long-pending demand for the regurgitation of services, among others. They sat on a protest outside the residence of PWD Minister Janmeja Singh Sekhon in the Model Town area of the city. The anganwari workers and helpers stated that the union members would now be staging protests outside the residences of Cabinet ministers. Protests were also held today by members of other organisations. 

Raising anti-government slogans, the protesters threatened to intensify their protest, if the government failed to meet their demands. Elaborating on their demands, the union leaders said, “Anganwadi workers are working on meagre salaries. In the past, we staged a 238-day protest outside the office of the Director, Social Security Women and Child Development, in Sector 34, Chandigarh, but the state government is still not paying heed to our demands.”

They demanded that the state government should make public the report submitted by the committee which was constituted to look into the matter of increasing the remuneration of anganwari workers and helpers. 

They said the report pertaining to the retirement of the workers and helpers and the amount which would be given to those getting retired. 

They added that the state government should ensure that the supply of ration reaches the centres at least 300 days per year.

The union members stated that under the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) of the Central Government, the anganwari centres were set up in 1975 aiming to provide pre-school education to children, ensure timely vaccination of the children, providing supplementary nutrition to children and expectant women, organising health check-up camps for expectant women and referral services.

They said the Central Government was now aiming to pocket funds meant for these centres by handing these over to private companies. They also accused the Centre of planning to slowly close these centres instead of working towards making these centres better.

They said in case the government succeeds in its plan to close these anganwari centres, more than 15 crore children would go back to suffering from malnutrition from which they were being saved by being offered nutritious food at anganwari centres. They also demanded that the Haryana pattern should be followed in the state and the promotion tenure of a helper should be reduced to five years from 10.