Tripura Anganwadi workers protest FRS system, demand policy rollback

BY TC News Desk

Agartala, 25^th July 2025:   The Tripura Anganwadi Workers and Helpers Union today staged a public protest in front of the office of the Director of Social Welfare and Social Education demanding the immediate withdrawal of the newly introduced Face Recognition System (FRS) for food distribution and raising several other key demands concerning their welfare and working conditions.

Addressing reporters at the protest site, a union member criticized the government’s move to mandate the uploading of beneficiaries’ photos and information on the Poshan app. “Under this new system, food will only be distributed after matching the facial image of the beneficiary. This is impractical, especially in rural areas where mobile network issues persist and many beneficiaries do not have Aadhaar linked with their mobile numbers,” the worker explained.

Highlighting the drawbacks of the FRS system, the union pointed out that earlier, if a beneficiary was unavailable, a family member could collect the food on their behalf. “Now, that flexibility is gone, and many deserving children and mothers may be deprived of nutrition,” a protestor said.

The union listed their key demands which include: Immediate cancellation of the FRS system; Assurance that no child or mother is deprived of food under the nutrition scheme; Provision of mobile phones to Anganwadi workers; Monthly reimbursement for mobile expenses; Increased budget allocation for ICDS; Feeding bills to be aligned with current market prices; Gratuity and pension benefits for workers; A minimum salary of Rs 26,000 and pension of Rs 10,000 for Anganwadi assistants; and Ensured workplace safety for female staff.

“If our demands are not addressed, we will be compelled to intensify our agitation and join a larger movement in the coming days,” the union warned.

The protest brought attention to the growing unrest among frontline nutrition and childcare workers over technology-driven changes that, they claim, are being enforced without adequate infrastructure or consideration of on-ground realities.