State inaction puts 9,000 anganwadis on hold

Nearly 9,000 new anganwadis were supposed to be up and running in the state by September-end, as per a Supreme Court directive.  

Government officials have, however, failed to observe the deadline and are now passing the buck on each other for the delay.

Ironically, the recent cases of malnutrition in the state have failed to induce the government into speeding things up.
 
The apex court had passed an order in January this year directing the Maharashtra government to ensure the setting up of additional anganwadis by the year-end. It had directed that the anganwadis come up in a phased manner.
 
However, the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) — a centrally-funded body looking after child development — is still waiting for a government resolution to get started with the setting up of anganwadis. The state government is yet to pass on a government resolution to the ICDS even after ten months of the SC directive.

“They should have sent a government resolution to us within two months of getting the SC order,” said a source from ICDS.

When asked about the delay, Vijay Satbir Singh, secretary of the state’s Women and Child Development Department, said,

“It is a lengthy procedure. A high-power committee has to sanction the locations of the anganwadis.” He was quick to add that he had recently cleared the proposal. “The ICDS should start working immediately. The anganwadis should be functional within a month,” he said.

However, is it feasible to get nearly 9,000 anganwadis up and running within a month? To this, ICDS Commissioner Ujjwal Uke said that it was difficult given that anganwadi workers have to have a minimum training of three months. “Locating space, and choosing a dedicated team naturally takes more time.”

Even as the government and the ICDS are struggling to start the second phase of the project, the government is optimistic of meeting the December deadline of the third phase. “We have already made a proposal for the third phase. It
will soon be reach the Centre,” said Uke. 

With authorities taking 10 months to come up with a simple government resolution, it is anyone’s guess how long the state will take to get rid of malnutrition.