By Tripura24.in Bureau
AGARTALA | June 12, 2026: Highlighting severe financial distress among the state’s grassroots welfare workforce, the State Committee of the Tripura Anganwadi Workers and Helpers Union convened a crucial press conference today. Meeting at the CITU headquarters at Office Lane in Agartala, the union’s leadership slammed the state administration for chronic delays in salary deposits, infrastructural negligence, and failing to execute judicial orders aimed at securing retirement benefits.
The press interaction was spearheaded by the Union’s State President, Panchali Bhattacharjee, who voiced the collective grievances of over 10,145 Anganwadi workers and thousands of helpers managing more than ten thousand Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) centers across Tripura.
Severe Salary Disbursal Delays and Disappointing Ministry Decisions
Addressing media persons, Union President Panchali Bhattacharjee exposed a troubling pattern of recurring economic negligence. She revealed that despite crossing the first week of June, thousands of Anganwadi employees have not received their monthly payouts, repeating a severe delay pattern that previously disrupted families in April under the guise of technical server glitches.
The union expressed strong indignation over recent statements made by Social Welfare and Social Education Minister Tinku Roy, who completely dismissed standard salary hikes on the grounds that Anganwadi employees are strictly “honorarium-based volunteer workers.”
”Our workers are the backbone of rural healthcare, tracking child malnutrition, maternal immunization, and delivering preschool education under challenging ground realities. Yet, our state provides one of the lowest remuneration packages in the country. At least 20 states and Union Territories, including small pockets like Puducherry and the Andaman & Nicobar Islands, offer substantially higher wages. Dismissing our livelihood as a mere voluntary honorarium is deeply insulting to our fundamental service,” Bhattacharjee declared.
Non-Compliance With Supreme Court And High Court Orders on Gratuity
The core agenda of the press brief centered on the administration’s reluctance to implement crucial legal mandates. The leadership pointed out that the Supreme Court of India had previously designated Anganwadi roles as statutory and crucial, validating their right to financial packages.
Furthermore, the High Court of Tripura passed an order explicitly directing the state government to disburse gratuity to all retiring Anganwadi workers and helpers.
- Sub Judice Excuse Denounced: The union slammed the departmental minister for attempting to delay the rollout by terming the issue sub judice. They argued that a direct High Court order cannot be casually bypassed.
- National Benchmarking: Speakers highlighted that states like Gujarat and Karnataka have already formalized execution frameworks to disburse gratuity to their retired ICDS personnel, leaving Tripura’s veterans struggling with zero post-retirement security.
Eight-Point Charter of Demands & Agitation Warning
The Tripura Anganwadi Workers and Helpers Union re-established their primary eight-point charter of demands, warning the department of a massive, state-wide lock-strike movement if immediate administrative intervention is denied.
The union also drew attention to the faulty digital ecosystem imposed on them. They stated that the low-grade smartphones distributed by the government became completely dysfunctional within months, forcing workers to spend their own money on replacement handsets and data recharges just to upload regular entries onto the central Poshan Tracker application.
The state committee concluded the media briefing by announcing that an all-district organizational convention will meet shortly to draft localized picketing schedules, declaring that their patience has worn out after years of unfulfilled administrative promises.
