UDUPI: S. Varalakshmi, the State President of the Anganwadi Workers’ Association, has strongly condemned the Udupi district administration for unfairly dismissing three Anganwadi workers deployed as Booth Level Officers (BLOs).

The workers were terminated from service after expressing their inability to participate in the ongoing high-pressure Strategic Information Reforms (SIR) election process due to severe health issues. In protest against this high-handed move, members of the association along with various allied organizations staged a massive sit-in demonstration in front of the District Complex in Manipal on Monday.

Addressing media persons, Varalakshmi labeled the action by Udupi Deputy Commissioner Swaroopa T.K. as “inhumane” and stated that no other district in Karnataka has witnessed such ruthless administrative behavior. Out of 1,222 Anganwadi centers in the district, 710 workers have been drafted for full-time SIR duties.

Despite three workers presenting valid medical proof regarding their illnesses, they were summarily dismissed without any prior show-cause notices. While Chetana from Kukkehalli managed to reclaim her position through legal recourse, two veteran workers—Surekha and Vinaya Bantakal—who served honestly for the past 15-20 years, remain terminated.

The division of workers drafted for BLO duties includes 219 from Kundapura, 219 from Brahmavara, 202 from Udupi, and 111 from Karkala. Varalakshmi argued that while Anganwadi workers are capable of basic tasks like voter enrollment and data correction, the demanding nature of SIR work overburdens them completely.

Furthermore, shifting these workers to permanent election desks disrupts core Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), nutritional distribution, pre-school education, and healthcare monitoring for pregnant women and lactating mothers. This continuous deployment severely compromises the foundational goals of the welfare schemes.

She also highlighted that parents are hesitating to send toddlers to centers due to a lack of supervision, further depleting attendance which is already hit by the introduction of LKG/UKG in government public schools. The association has demanded immediate corrective steps from the higher authorities to resolve this crisis.

Core Demands Presented to the District Administration:

Immediate reinstatement of all dismissed workers and those who resigned under extreme election pressure.
Total exemption from tedious election and survey duties for workers aged above 50 and those suffering from chronic illnesses.
No scapegoating or punitive action against Anganwadi staff if technical errors surface during the SIR documentation.
Immediate release of long-pending honorariums and allowances owed to the district’s Anganwadi workers.

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