Ongole: Mini Anganwadi workers demand decent remuneration

Ongole: The members from the Prakasam district units of Andhra Pradesh Anganwadi Workersand Helpers Union staged a protest in front of the office of the ICDS project director in Ongole on Thursday. They demanded the immediate resolution of the issues at the Mini Anganwadis in the district.

Addressing the protestors, union district general secretary Edara Annapurna said that following the Supreme Court directions to provide Anganwadi services to all people, the Mini Anganwadis are established at the habitations of the population from 150 to 400. She said that the women working in the Mini Anganwadis are looking after the responsibilities of the teacher and helper but being paid the salary for helper only. She said that they are not being allowed to take any leaves or even vacation in the summer but are working equally with the main Anganwadi centre staff.

She said the government is not providing any medical kits, preschool kits, registers required for the functioning of the centre. She said that though the population at mini Anganwadis increased to 700 to 1,000, the government is not upgrading it to the main Anganwadi centres. Annapurna and others demanded that the government should increase the salary of the mini Anganwadi workers and they should be paid equally with the Anganwadi worker in the mainAnganwadis, upgrade the mini anganwadis where population is above 400 to main Angawadis, provide all essentials being given to Anganwadi centres, sanction leaves and summer holidays, allow the eligible to attend exams for the supervisor posts, fulfil the vacancies of main Anganwadi workers with mini Anganwadi workers based on the eligibility with no need to wait for 10 years.

Later, they submitted the representation to the project director Lakshmi Devi and requested for the early redressal of the issues.