Making a mess of the ICDS Pathetic figure of 25 pc
- Sangai Express Editorial :: July 15, 2013 -

Disgusting and disturbing.

And not surprising too, for inefficiency, lethargy and ineptness have been the defining characteristics of almost anything that has got to do with the Government of Manipur.

Only 25 pc Anganwadi Centres functioning out of Government buildings out of 80 such centres selected randomly across the State and the picture should become clear.

Will not be surprising if the figure shoot ups drastically if all the 9795 Anganwadi Centres are to be inspected.

In all likelihood, the rest, that is those outside the 25 pc of the 80 Centres inspected, may not have any structure as such.

Spread the net a little wider, let the inspection cover the hills and the remote areas and the situation can only be imagined.

Complements well with the manner in which the Integrated Child Development Scheme, which is synonymous with Anganwadi Centres finds itself in a mess today.

Workers and helpers not paid for 14 months.

A mere look at this may not come as such a shocker, but view it in the backdrop of the fact that 90 percent of the honorarium to be paid to the workers and the helpers are borne by the Centre and it becomes all that more bitter and unacceptable.

Maybe, the people responsible for looking after the ICDS and the functioning of the Anganwadi Centres need a refresher course or better still, a major shake up may just go some way in dealing with the issue.

It is much more than the lack of Government structures or workers and helpers not being paid for months on end, but is a reflection of the Government’s devil may care attitude towards young children and young mothers.

A state of affairs, which clearly says, damn the children of the poorer section of society.

Responsibilities should be fixed.

This is not the time to take cover under official speak such as the Finance Department or other departments not releasing the fund or not fulfilling their part of the deal.

Maybe a thorough shake up of the State Social Welfare Department may just be what the doctors would prescribe.

The spin wizards, who have perfected the art of passing the buck and in the process made a mockery of a scheme for young children like the ICDS have no business to be lording over the affairs of this crucial department.

Dealing with issues concerning children and young mothers is something very different from pushing files and organising seminars and awareness programmes on paper.

This is the one line statement that should be grilled into the heads of the people helming the affairs of the Social Welfare Department.

Providing nutritious food to young children should be seen beyond the mere understanding of feeding a group of young children for the day.

It is about ensuring a healthy, young generation.

The findings of the survey conducted by an independent agency tells a grim story.

Out of the 80 Centres surveyed and studied it was found that only 37 centres have been providing supplementary nutritional food to children regularly while in 31 percent of the Anganwadi Centres studied, nutritional food is not at all available.

Lack of funds? Sounds more like a case of the funds lining the pockets of the suited, booted officials and their political masters.

If this is how schemes, that too taken up under the initiatives of the Centre for young children and young mothers, are being rubbished, then one can only imagine the overall state of affairs in the other schemes taken up at the instance of Delhi here.

To be sure, the State Government or more specifically the department concerned here would not respond to the findings furnished by the agency nor give a coherent explanation on why the honorariums of workers and helpers of Anganwadi Centres have not been paid for 14 months.

Where is the money released by the Centre to meet the payments of the workers and helpers gone ? At the best one may expect official statements, which hide and confuse the people more rather than throw any light on the matter.