380 anganwadis in DK district to shift to government buildings

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangaluru, Oct  25,2016: It is reported that at least 380 anganwandi centres in Dakshina Kannada, functioning in rented buildings, will soon be shifted to government buildings. Women and Child Welfare Department has taken up this initiative after former DK DC A B Ibrahim ordered them to find suitable places in government buildings instead of rented spaces. Among 380, 62 anganwadis running in rented spaces come under the MCC, Mangaluru City Corporation limits.

"We are finding extremely difficult to get a government building/ site to construct anganwadi centres due to lack of land and funds. Shifting them to a suitable place has become a hurdle," said Sundara Poojary, deputy director of women and child welfare department. Mangaluru city has 39 anganwadis and rest of them are functioning from rented buildings in Mangaluru rural area.

In DK district, there are about 2,104 anganwadis functioning across five taluks; among them 1,724 have their own buildings; 57 function in panchayat/community halls, 95 in government schools, 126 in Yuvaka/Yuvaki Mandala buildings. These 2,104 centres cater to 1,12,112 children between one to six years in the district.

As these buildings function under rented spaces, former deputy commissioner A B Ibrahim had directed the deputy directors of concerned departments to find space in the school premises to run anganwadis that have no buildings. Despite government’s direction to sanction land for all anganwadis in the district, the revenue department has failed to comply with it.

DD Sundara added that the department is seriously thinking about shifting all these centres to its own space, but finding a site is a major problem, especially in city limits.   Though we have marked some of the sites in city, but are unable to get grants from the government.