Citing the recent death of an anganwadi worker, Kamini Nigam, working in Unnao district due to coronavirus infection and lack of treatment facility, Workers’ Front, an Uttar Pradesh-based civil rights organization, has demanded that the state government should immediately stop asking the anganwadi workers to carry out survey work for detecting Covid-19 patients.
In a letter to chief minister Yogi Adityanath, Workers’ Front president Dinkar Kapoor, even as demanding compensation to the tune of Rs 50 lakh to the kin of Kamini Nigam, said, anganwadis’ main job is to mainly serve nutritional and health needs of pregnant and lactating women, children under xsic and teenager girls under 18. These groups have to be kept safe as per Government of India guidelines. By putting anganwadi workers in survey work, the state government is putting the life these sections in danger.
Kamini Nigam was carrying out survey under the orders of the government, the letter said, adding, during this work, she became Covid-19 infected, but failed to get any treatment in Unnao. As a result she was taken to a Kanpur hospital, where she did not get any bed, and succumbed the disease.
Additional chief secretary Revenue Renuka Kumar on April 11 had ordered an insurance of Rs 50 lakh in case of death of permanent or temporary employees engaged in Covid-19 work. “As per this mandate, Kamini Nigam’s relatives should also be provided with Rs 50 lakh compensation”, the letter insisted.
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