Fed up with repeated assurances of authorities concerned, 159 displaced Anganwadi workers of Kashmir have sought an appointment with Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir Manoj Sinha to get their wages for the last three years.
Migrated from different areas of Kashmir Valley in the early 1990s after the eruption of terrorism, these Anganwadi workers have been performing their duties in different Anganwadi centres in Jammu run by the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme of Socal Welfare Department.
"With no reason, we have been denied wages. We have been approaching from one office to another but to no avail", Basanti Bhat, one of the aggrieved Anganwadi workers told International Bussiness Times.
She further said that all displaced Anganwadi workers have been performing their duties in different Anganwadi centres in different areas of Jammu.
"As officers are not solving our humanitarian issue we have sought an appointment with Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha to highlight our plight," she said.
Echoing in a similar voice, another aggrieved worker Pinki Bhat told IBT that she had joined the department in 1983 and after migration, she has been performing her duty with sincerity and dedication.
"Denying wages to us is not only inhuman but also contempt of the court because Supreme Court has already directed the J&K government to release our wages regularly", she said.
Higher-ups to take a final call says officer concerned
Admitting there is an issue of wages of displaced Anganwadi workers, Mission Director ICDS Jammu Rubina Kousar told International Business Times that decision in this regard has to be taken by the administrative department.
"We have forwarded the case to the administrative department with all relevant documents now the final decision has to be taken up by higher-ups", she said.
Despite repeated attempts, no senior officer of the Social Welfare Department was ready to speak on this issue.
No wages since 2020
Aggrieved Anganwari workers said that since 2020 they were not paid wages. In the year 2018, these workers were paid wages only for five months. Similarly, in the year 2019, only eight months of wages were released. Since 2020, authorities have stopped releasing their wages.
The Supreme Court has also directed the Jammu and Kashmir Government to release and disburse monthly honorarium to displaced migrant Anganwari workers regularly.
