Traffic movement in Kolar was disrupted for over an hour on Monday as hundreds of anganwadi workers formed a human chain at the busy Mekke Circle in the town. They were staging a protest condemning the move to privatise the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) in the name of ICDS Mission.
“It is nothing but privatising of ICDS, which is a very vital service in overcoming malnutrition among the children and women of the country,” the anganwadi workers maintained.
Led by CITU-affiliated Karnataka Anganawadi Noukarara Sangha, the protesters took out a procession and later formed the human chain, throwing vehicular movement out of gear.
The union demanded that the government should regularise the services of anaganwadi workers as group C employees and assistants as group D employees and fix their wages at Rs. 20,000 and Rs. 17,000 a month respectively. Priority should be given to anganwadi workers in the recruitment of primary teachers, health assistants and grama sevaks, they said. The protesters raised slogans against the Union government and the State government for their attempts to privatise the ICDS.
CITU district president Gandhinagar Narayanaswamy, Union taluk president Venkatalakshmamma, and secretary Munirajamma were present.
