Anganwadi Workers Rally for Wage Revision
Hundreds of anganwadi workers, wearing black saris and carrying red flags of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), staged a protest march in Visakhapatnam on Friday, demanding a monthly wage of ₹26,000 and the withdrawal of the Nava Chetana mobile application.
The rally began at Jagadamba Junction and passed through the Clock Tower and King George Hospital (KGH) areas before culminating at the Collectorate. Workers from different parts of the district participated in the demonstration, raising slogans and carrying placards listing their demands.
Addressing the gathering, CITU district president L. Devi and district secretary K. Venkata Lakshmi alleged that Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu had promised to increase the wages of anganwadi workers while in the Opposition, but the assurance remained unfulfilled even after two years of the present government’s tenure.
The leaders also claimed that anganwadi workers’ wages had not been revised by either the State or the Centre for the past seven years despite rising inflation. They said workers had been assigned additional responsibilities, including operating the Nava Chetana mobile application and performing election-related duties, without any corresponding increase in remuneration.
CITU district secretary R.K.S.V. Kumar accused the government of extending concessions worth thousands of crores of rupees to large corporate firms while ignoring the long-pending wage demands of anganwadi workers. He alleged that leaders who had supported the workers during their 42-day strike under the previous government had failed to honour their promise of revising wages after coming to power.
Union leaders said the agitation would continue until the government announced a wage revision, adding that CITU would continue to support the workers’ protest.
As the District Collector and Joint Collector were unavailable, the protesters submitted a memorandum to District Revenue Officer Visweswara Naidu.