Ascertaining the status of existing AWCs in urban and tribal areas

August 19, 2022

A Public Interest Litigation has been filed in the Hon’ble High Court of Karnataka that the number of anganwadi centres in the state is inadequate to cater to the needs of the population. The Hon’ble High Court and a committee headed by Hon’ble Justice A.N. Venugopalagowda, has directed the Department of Women and Child Development, Government of Karnataka to submit a report on the action taken to establish Anganwadi Centres in the state.

In pursuance of this direction, the department commissioned CCL to conduct a study on the adequacy of the number of anganwadi centres in tribal and urban areas of the state and to assess the status of functioning of the already established centres in these areas.

CCL undertook secondary analysis of the available data and identified the number of anganwadi centres required to be established in tribal and urban areas. Based on this data, field visits are being carried out in Belagavi, Bengaluru Urban, Chikkamagalur, Chitradurga, Haveri, Kalaburgi, Mysuru, Vijayanagara and Uttara Kannada districts to analyse the status of anganwadi centres.

The key objectives of these visits are to understand:

  • Reasons behind non-establishing anganwadi centres as per the population norms;
  • Reasons behind non-functioning of anganwadi centres where established;
  • Issues related to accountability, community participation, basic infrastructure etc.
  • Specific issues faced in tribal and urban areas affecting functioning of anganwadi centres.