Gujarat government’s lofty claims of providing water to 100% of households under the state’s ‘Nal Se Jal Yojana’ have fallen flat, as over 2,296 Anganwadis have not received safe drinking water. According to a report from the Women and Child Welfare Department, 1,564 Anganwadis do not have toilet facilities. Gujarat has over 53,029 Anganwadi centres. However, 2,296 of them do not have access to safe drinking water. According to the Ministry of Women and Child Development’s response in the Lok Sabha, there are 50,029 Anganwadi centres in Gujarat, with 46,104 of them in ‘pakka’ structures, so there are approximately 3,925 Anganwadis operating in ‘kutcha’ structures. Furthermore, 43,161 Anganwadis are run in government facilities, 2,943 in cooperative structures, and 6,923 in rented residences. According to the MoU signed in 2015 between the Ministry of Women and Child Development and Vedanta, the government has begun the process of modernising Anganwadi centres across the country; however, none of the Gujarat Anganwadi centres have been upgraded as of the ministry’s response dated 03.02.2023. While the government pays an Anganwadi Worker Rs 5,500 per month and an Anganwadi Helper Rs 3,250 per month, employee organisations argue that the majority of this money is spent on Anganwadi workers’ transportation costs.
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