Anganwadi workers in Uttar Pradesh have started receiving a higher monthly honorarium of Rs 12,000, up from Rs 8,000, while helpers are being paid Rs 6,000 per month, according to a report by Times of India. The payments have begun ahead of Diwali and are part of a wider package that includes health insurance access, smartphones and an additional sari for women workers.
The increase affects 1,75,982 Anganwadi workers and 1,70,656 helpers, Additional Chief Secretary of the Women and Child Development Department Leena Johri said, according to the report. Together, the figures represent more than 3.46 lakh workers and helpers involved in the state’s Anganwadi network.
The revised honorarium changes the monthly payment received by workers from Rs 8,000 to Rs 12,000. Helpers, who support the functioning of Anganwadi centres, will receive Rs 6,000 per month. The report did not specify whether the revised amounts include any separate central government contribution or the date from which arrears, if applicable, would be calculated.
The state has also extended cashless treatment of up to Rs 5 lakh per year to Anganwadi workers, helpers and their family members. The report described the benefit as covering 3.35 lakh Anganwadi workers and helpers and their families. It did not provide details of the health scheme’s implementing agency, empanelled hospitals, claim process or eligibility conditions for individual family members.
Women workers will receive one additional sari this year. The government has released Rs 500 per person for the item, according to the report. The payment is separate from the revised monthly honorarium and the health cover described in the announcement.
The package also includes an expansion of technology facilities intended to modernise the Anganwadi system. In the first phase, 1,23,398 smartphones were provided to workers, while another 69,803 smartphones were distributed under a replacement policy. The report did not state how the devices will be used, which applications they will carry or whether further distribution is planned.
Anganwadi centres form part of the public delivery system for services involving women and children. The newly announced measures therefore combine an employment-related payment increase with welfare protection and digital equipment for frontline workers. The department’s statement, as reported by Times of India, identifies the revised honorarium, health cover, clothing allowance and smartphone distribution as the main components of the package. Further details on implementation, claims and device usage were not available in the report.
