Agartala, 1ST June 2026: Anganwadi workers and helpers under the Sonamura Nagar Panchayat submitted a deputation to the Child Development Project Officer (CDPO) on Monday, pressing for the fulfillment of long-pending demands. The memorandum, addressed to the Director of the Department of Social Welfare and Social Education, outlined a seven-point charter seeking equal pay for equal work, regularization of services, provision of gratuity upon retirement, introduction of a pension scheme, and enhancement of mobile and SNP (Supplementary Nutrition Programme) allowances, among other benefits.
The workers emphasized that the Supreme Court has recently ruled in favor of gratuity and pension benefits for Anganwadi employees upon termination of service. They further pointed out that in November 2023, the Tripura High Court directed immediate disbursement of gratuity to retired workers, but the order remains unimplemented. Expressing frustration, one worker stated that the deputation was necessary to remind authorities of their obligations and warned of a larger agitation if their demands are ignored.
CDPO Prabal Kanti Barman, who oversees the Sonamura ICDS Project, acknowledged the legitimacy of the demands and assured the workers that he would escalate the matter to higher authorities. The Sonamura subdivision, comprising Sonamura Nagar, Boxanagar, Melaghar, and Kathalia, currently operates 649 Anganwadi centers with a workforce of 1,298 individuals, underscoring the scale of the issue.
