Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Aug 29: The Anganwadi workers and helpers from various districts of Kashmir today staged a protest against the non-payment of their wages while they pressed for a hike of the same.
Scores of such workers appeared in the Press Enclave and were seen raising slogans in favor of their demands while urging the authorities to intervene in the matter and ensure fulfillment of the same without any delay.
Chief Organizers of the Anganwadi Workers and Helpers Association, Latiefa Ganai said that the Anganwadi workers and helpers in all the J&K districts are suffering and that the Government is not paying any heed to it.
“It is the issue of the entire J&K and we are suffering even as the J&K has been turned into a UT-something that should have resulted in an increase in wages for us, however, nothing of that sort has happened,” she said.
The Anganwadi workers said their wages have not been released for the last 8 months, while the liability for 2019 has also not been released.
“Our honorarium is pending for the last 8 months, which is a norm, and on and off you witness the protests of these workers; concerning the liability, the Director, ICDS has clearly said that they are not going to release that even as we have worked which is sheer injustice,” they said.
The workers said that they are facing sheer discrimination and the case in point is that of Pondicherry where Anganwadi workers get Rs 25000, helpers are given Rs 18000 while they are getting Rs 1000 from J&K and Rs 4000 from the center.
The Anganwadi workers and helpers, who are nearly 59000 in number across J&K, said that injustice is everywhere and that the Government slogan of ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’ is a mere hoax.
The workers said that the situation in other states of the country is quite different where, they said, the workers are getting wages as per their work and that the same is released to them on time.
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