PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/Dehradun
Taking a stern note of the instances of work disruptions, the Women Empowerment and Child Development (WECD) minister Rekha Arya directed that Anganwadi workers should dedicate at least one hour daily to departmental duties at their centres while also participating in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) programme.
During a review meeting held at Vidhan Sabha meeting hall on Friday, Arya expressed her dissatisfaction with the disruption of departmental work, due to the excuse of Anganwadi workers being busy with their involvement in the SIR programme.
In her review of various departmental schemes on Friday with the officials concerned, Arya highlighted that most of these schemes are funded by the central government and are monitored online daily. Negligence in data entry could negatively impact the department’s upcoming budget. To address this, she instructed that every Anganwadi worker in the State, in addition to their roles as Booth Level Officers (BLOs), to spend at least one hour every day at their centres to complete required departmental work. The department’s secretary has been tasked with sending a letter to all district magistrates regarding this directive.
Arya also said that the department has issued notifications for the recruitment of Anganwadi workers and assistants, with plans to fill 438 positions for workers and 2,773 positions for assistants by the end of August. This is part of a broader effort to achieve full recruitment for these roles across the State.
Additionally, Arya expressed concern over the low issuance rates of Aadhaar cards and Apaar IDs for children registered at Anganwadi centres in the state. She instructed all district probation officers, who attended the meeting virtually, to ensure that all children’s Aadhaar cards and Apaar IDs are issued by the end of July, warning that departmental action would be taken against those who fail to comply.
She also emphasised the need for regular monitoring of children’s weights at Anganwadi centres, consistent data entry into the nutrition tracker app, timely delivery of nutritional materials to all centres and ensuring the availability of electricity, water, toilets and kitchen facilities at these centres.
