Recruitment of Educators in UP is Against the New Education Policy

Anganwadi workers across Uttar Pradesh are currently on a path of protest. In various districts like Moradabad, Pratapgarh, Sonbhadra, Lucknow, Gonda, Prayagraj, Mau, Jaunpur, and Fatehpur, Anganwadi workers have staged demonstrations opposing the recruitment of educators by the Uttar Pradesh government. Their demand is that the government should allow Anganwadi workers to perform this role and increase their honorarium instead of recruiting new educators.

On August 24, 2024, Kanchan Verma, Director General of School Education, Uttar Pradesh, issued an order to all Basic Education Officers in the state to recruit ECCE educators on a contract basis for Anganwadi centers operating in council schools through the selection committee in their respective districts. The recruitment has been announced for 10,684 posts, with educators to be appointed for 11 months on a contract basis, receiving an honorarium of INR 10,313 per month, including EPF and ESI. The qualifications required include a bachelor’s degree in Home Science with at least 50% marks or a two-year diploma in Nursery Teaching or an equivalent qualification recognized by the National Council for Teacher Education. The responsibilities of these educators include preparing children aged 3 to 6 years for formal education, creating an environment for their physical, mental, social, emotional, and academic development, and assisting Anganwadi workers. A committee, chaired by the District Magistrate, has been formed at the district level for the selection of resource agencies, including the Principal of DIET, the DPO of ICDS, the District Employment Officer, the Finance and Accounts Officer of Basic Education, with the District Basic Education Officer as its secretary.

This recruitment of educators by the Uttar Pradesh government clearly violates the provisions of the New Education Policy 2020. The New Education Policy emphasizes the care and education of children aged 3 to 6 years and mandates that by 2025, all children in the country must receive this education. The policy states that pre-primary classes or “Bal Vatikas” for children under five years of age should be strengthened by enhancing Anganwadi centers. The policy also mentions that Anganwadi workers who have passed intermediate education will undergo a six-month certificate program in child care and education. Those with lesser educational qualifications will undergo a one-year diploma course before being deployed. Anganwadi centers fall under the Department of Child Development and Nutrition and are operated by this department. The Uttar Pradesh government should have aligned with the New Education Policy and prepared Anganwadi workers accordingly, who are already engaged in the educational activities and care of children aged 3 to 6 years. Therefore, the order by the Directorate of School Education or Basic Education to interfere in their work by recruiting educators is unnecessary and against the rules.

If we look at the situation of Anganwadi workers in Uttar Pradesh, it is extremely poor. There are 182,741 Anganwadi workers and 112,756 assistants working in the state. Uttar Pradesh is the state where these workers receive the lowest honorarium in the country. Anganwadi workers receive only INR 6,000 per month, which is significantly lower than the wages earned by laborers under MGNREGA. The rent provided for operating Anganwadi centers is also much lower than the standards set by the central government. According to the government order, they should receive INR 3,000 per month as rent in urban areas, but they are only getting INR 750. The state government is not even willing to increase the honorarium, let alone granting them the status of state employees.

The Yogi government has decided to retire Anganwadi workers at the age of 62 and denied them any benefits like pension, gratuity, or paid leave. Anganwadi unions and several workers approached the High Court, and the Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court ordered the government to provide gratuity at the time of retirement, but the government refused to comply with the order and approached the Supreme Court to have it stayed.

This government’s seriousness towards children’s education can also be gauged from this example. It has shut down 24,000 council schools with less than 30 students and is in the process of closing 27,000 more schools with less than 50 students. In a Parliament session, the Minister of Personnel informed that 1.26 lakh headmaster posts and 1.39 lakh teacher posts were abolished by this government between 2021 and 2023. Even today, 126,490 positions are vacant in council schools. The situation is so dire that the High Court recently directed the government to fill 27,000 vacant positions in primary schools.

Multiple times, both the central and state governments have rejected proposals to increase the honorarium in Parliament and the state assembly. Across the country, 1,348,135 Anganwadi workers and 1,023,068 assistants are denied minimum wages despite recommendations from labor conferences. The central government’s argument is that it does not have the resources to pay them minimum wages. However, this is not true. A large portion of the national budget is given to corporate houses, while the government is continuously reducing the budget allocated to social security. The budget share for ICDS is also being consistently cut. If the government imposes appropriate taxes on the wealth of corporate houses and large capitalists, the issue of regularizing Anganwadi workers and providing them with a respectable honorarium can be resolved.

Dinkar Kapoor, State General Secretary, All India People’s Front, Uttar Pradesh