Anganwadi Workers Protest Over Unfulfilled Wage Promise

Anganwadi workers staged a protest under the banner of CITU near the RTC Complex here on Tuesday. They demanded a wage hike and condemned the police for allegedly mistreating their counterparts in Vijayawada.

The workers marched from the GVMC office to the RTC Complex. There, they blocked the main road and sat down, disrupting traffic for some time.

CITU district general secretary R. K. S. V. Kumar, Anganwadi union president L. Devi, secretary K. Venkatalakshmi, and deputy general secretary Brinda addressed the gathering. They recalled a 42-day protest staged by Anganwadi workers during the previous government’s tenure. They said current MLAs, Ministers, and the Chief Minister had visited the camp when they were in the Opposition. At the time, they promised wage hikes if voted to power in the 2024 general elections.

The leaders alleged that one-and-a-half years into office, the Chandrababu Naidu government had failed to deliver. They said Anganwadi teachers’ and ayahs’ wages had remained unchanged for eight years, while prices of essential goods had risen sharply. Workers submitted representations to MLAs and Ministers, but the government did not act.

The protesters also referred to the “Chalo Vijayawada” demonstration held on February 22. They said the government had agreed to talks, but police dragged the workers from their tents in the early hours of Tuesday. Officers forced them into vans and moved them to police stations on the city outskirts.

Demanding the immediate release of their colleagues, the workers warned that the agitation would escalate if their demands were ignored. Anganwadi Project 3 leaders Chinnamalu, Sai Saraswathi, Shobarani, Eswaramma, Komali, and Ravanamma joined the protest.