Darjeeling: Tug of war between Anit Thapa and Raju Bista to take credit on Anganwadi promotion
A tug-of-war has erupted between hill leaders Anit Thapa and Raju Bista over Union Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani and her Bengal counterpart Shashi Panja in the Darjeeling Hills following the recent amendment in education norms to promote Anganwadi workers. ,
Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha (BGPM) chief and Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) chief executive Anit Thapa explained in detail about his efforts to highlight the issue of Anganwadi workers.
According to Thapa, who is an aide of the Mamata Banerjee government in Bengal, he had written to Panja on December 13, 2023, for the decision to increase the education incentive norms for Anganwadi assistants from class X to class XII.
“The Executive Assembly of the GTA has also taken note of the above and in its meeting held on 03/11/2023 has unanimously decided that the promotion norms to the post of Anganwadi Workers may be relaxed and Class X within the GTA area Can be brought up to. “The promotion process has not been done here for more than a decade,” Thapa’s letter dated December 13, 2023, said.
Since 2005, promotion could not take place in the hills without the elected Panchayat system.
The change in educational qualification criteria was released by the state government on September 10, 2023. There are approximately 3,000 Anganwadi assistants in the Darjeeling Hills.
The state government’s order to reinstate the old educational qualification was issued on January 19, 2024.
Pointing towards the state government, Thapa said, “The workers have got justice. The government has heard our voice.”
However, BJP’s Darjeeling MP, Raju Bista, without naming Thapa, disputed his story and credited his party colleague and Union minister Irani.
“On behalf of the Anganwadi workers in Darjeeling Lok Sabha constituency, I express my heartfelt gratitude to the Honorable Minister of Women and Child Development, Ms. Smriti Irani Ji for her positive response to our request regarding continuation of the old recruitment criteria for promotion…” , Bista said in a written statement.
Bista said that the Anganwadi helpers met her on December 2 and apprised her “regarding a notification of the West Bengal government”, she immediately wrote to Irani for her intervention on the same day.
Bista said the Center issued a clarification on December 20, 2023, following which the state government’s memorandum amended the eligibility.
The state government’s January 19 order said the norms are being revised in the context of the clarification issued by the Center on December 20.
Bista made public the clarification issued by the central government to “all principal secretaries of all states/UTs”, which said that the assistants who were recruited before the Saksham Anganwadi and Nutrition 2.O guidelines came out, will be considered for the earlier Will be promoted under the provisions. These new guidelines were issued on August 1, 2022.
