Tirupati: Anganwadi workers stage dharna

Chandragiri (Tirupati district): Intensifying their agitation, Anganwadi workers and helpers staged rasta roko in Chandragiri on Sunday, to press the government to accept their demands.

Earlier, they took out a rally and sat on the road and raised slogans condemning the government for its apathy in conceding their demands.

Addressing the gathering, CITU leader S Jayachandra, IDWA district secretary P Sai Lakshmi and AITUC district president Chandrashekhar Reddy extended their support to Anganwadi workers and helpers.

They demanded the government to increase Anganwadi workers’ salaries to Rs 26,000 per month and also issue orders to consider workers and helpers as government employees, to provide job security and also avail benefits on par with the State government employees. IFTU State vice-president Rayapaneni Harikrishna warned that they will intensify the Anganwadi agitation, if the government did not concede their demands immediately. He along with INTUC leader Bharathi criticised the government for its failure to respond to the Anganwadi workers’ demands, though they have been protesting for two years.