From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network

Bangalore, Feb 1: The 63,377 anganawadi workers and assistants in Karnataka will get a hefty hike costing Rs 55 crore to the State exchequer annually.

While the monthly salary of the anganawadi will go up by Rs 500 and assistants will get a hike of Rs 250 a month, the medical claims will be raised from Rs. 20,000 to Rs. 50,000.

Karnataka’s Women and Child Development Minister C C Patil said the anganawadi workers and assistants will get the hike from their present salaries of Rs 2500 and Rs 1250 a month respectively.

The minister said the proposal on salary hike has already been discussed with the Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa, who is also holding charge of the finance department, and sent to the Finance Department for the approval.

Anganwadi staff has been staging protests quite frequently demanding increase in the salary and other allowances on par with the Government employees.

Already an order has been issued to grant 15 summer holidays for anganwadi staff and discussion were held to fix retirement age for workers and assistants.

A proposal has been sent to the Centre seeking funds to build 6311 anganwadi centres, Patil said.

Stating that the department has taken up a recruitment drive to fill existing vacancies in centres, the minister said 50 per cent of seats in the supervisor category would be set aside for in-service anganwadi workers and assistants.

Already 536 SSLC, and PUC qualified and 179 graduate anganwadi workers have been appointed as supervisors, he said.

For filling vacant 17 child development planning officers and 231 supervisory posts, the department has written to the Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC) to commence the process for recruiting the qualified candidates, he said.

The department has proposed to launch a counselling process from the coming academic year (2011-12) for transfer of supervisors of anganwadi centres and a decision to this effect would be taken up soon.

For identification of workers and assistants, the minister said two set of uniforms would be given to them costing Rs. 400. The Karnataka Handloom Development Corporation (KHDC) has agreed to supply uniforms, the minister said.