Arya pushes for 10 per cent budget allocation to local bodies for women & child development

 PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/Dehradun 

The Women Empowerment and Child Development (WECD) minister Rekha Arya said that 10 per cent of the budget allocated to local bodies should be reserved for women and child development. She made this statement during a virtual meeting with Union minister of WECD Annpurna Devi, which included WECD ministers from all States on Friday. 

During the meeting, Arya presented a comprehensive roadmap to the central government, outlining how half of the country’s population can play a crucial role in making India a developed nation by 2047. She provided over 20 suggestions to the central government. Arya emphasised the need to develop a skilled workforce for women’s empowerment and to include technical skills as part of the qualifications for personnel. She called for a radical change in the way the department operates, proposing that the role of Anganwadi centres should be fully digitised to enhance their effectiveness. 

Arya stressed the necessity of increasing the female workforce in women’s empowerment and child development work to 50 per cent, similar to standards observed in Europe. She also suggested that Anganwadi centres be operated as day boarding schools. Additionally, she highlighted the importance of conducting regular research and social audits in this area, while ensuring proper care for pregnant women and attention to the nutrition and education of children up to the age of six. 

She further emphasised for the expansion of the Kishori Balika Pariyojana to all districts, with a particular focus on skill development and proposed the creation of a grading system for Anganwadi centres. The Union minister expressed appreciation for the suggestions made by Uttarakhand and assured their implementation. 

It is important to highlight that Uttarakhand presented several additional proposals during the meeting. These included updating and increasing the nutritional standards for infants, raising the budget for Anganwadi centre repairs from Rs 3,000 to Rs 10,000, ensuring that 80 per cent of the construction budget for Anganwadi centres under MNREGA is designated for materials, with the remaining 20 per cent allocated for labour and implementing a face recognition system along with OTP for the Take Home Ration Scheme, which would enable any family member of the beneficiary to access the scheme through mobile devices. Other proposals consisted of providing vocational training and scholarships for girls as part of the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao initiative to better prepare them for competitive examinations, allocating at least two vehicles for immediate support to women through One Stop Centres, among others.