Anganwadi workers, helpers stage protest
Source: Hueiyen News Service / NNN

Imphal, July 23 2014: The Anganwadi Workers and Helpers Union Manipur, All Manipur ASHA Workers' Union along with Mid Day Meal workers held a protest here on Tuesday as part of the nationwide protest day of scheme workers ( Anaganwadi, ASHA and Meal Day Meal workers) observed by the All India Anganwadi Workers' Federation.

Hundreds of members of the Anganwadi, ASHA and Mead Day Meal workers tried to take out a rally from Irabot Bhawan here to push for their demands in the morning.

But a large number of police prevented them from holding the rally.

However, Officer-in-Charge of Imphal City Police, M Sudhir later on allowed seven protesters to submit memorandums to Chief Minister O Ibobi, Social Welfare minister AK Mirabai and Health & Family Welfare minister Phungzathang Tonsing.

In the memorandums, they urged the Government to fix the monthly regular wages of ASHAs, to regularize the ASHA workers as full time Government employees, to cover them under social security schemes like PF, pension, gratuity, etc.

The Anganwadi workers and helpers should be recognized as grade-III and grade-IV Government employees, honorariums should be increased to Rs 12,000 for the workers and Rs 8,000 for the helpers, the memorandums demanded.

The memorandums further demanded that the Government of India should increase its budget allocation for the women and child development programmes and take decision to promote gender based budgeting, and to allocate at least 40 percent of all funds for the development of women.

Integrated Child Development Service (ICDS) should be kept under the direct supervision of the Government and not under Public Private Partnership (PPP), they demanded.

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