ICDS in a mess, honorarium pending for 14 months
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, July 12, 2013: Even though monthly honorarium for workers and helpers of Anganwadi centres set up under ICDS of which Social Welfare Department is the nodal department has been pending for several months, Finance Department is yet to give necessary authorisation for releasing the pending honorarium.

Although due correspondence is being made within the Government for releasing the pending honorarium of Anganwadi workers and helpers, there has been little progress in the official procedure, informed a source.

Till October last year, the total number of Anganwadi centres in the State was 9795.Workers and helpers of these 9795 Anganwadi centres have not been getting their monthly honorarium since May last year.

As such, their honorarium has been pending for the past 14 months.

Due to the huge backlog in the payment of honorariums, Anganwadi workers and helpers are not in a position to discharge their duties regularly and effectively.

With many of the Anganwadi centres becoming defunct due to non-attendance of children , a large number of Anganwadi workers and helpers have been simply waiting for monthly honorarium without doing any work.

Apart from children, Anganwadi workers and helpers are assigned to check body weight of pregnant women and provide them nutritious food.

But these tasks are performed in very few Anganwadi centres out of the total of 9795 centres.

Although a large number of Anganwadi centres were opened without any restraint in the name of implementing ICDS, these centres are not getting what are due to them as per the scheme guidelines.

This is one of the main reasons for parents to send their kid to pre-school centres.

Subsequently, very few numbers of kids are attending Anganwadi centres.

As demanded by the guidelines, one worker and one helper were appointed in every Anganwadi centre.

On account of not paying monthly honorarium from May last year till June this year, the State Government is facing a liability of Rs 61,70,85,000. Keeping a liability of such a huge amount is a clear indication that the authorities are unable to implement ICDS properly.

In the same manner, there are many central sponsored schemes of which the Centre could not release necessary fund in time because the State Government could not produce its share.

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