TIRUPPUR: Parents of children attending the Anganwadi in ward 7 of Dharapuram Municipality voiced safety concerns after water leaked into the building during rain. They demanded that a new building be constructed immediately and that the Anganwadi be shifted to a temporary building until then.
About 30 children usually attend the centre. On Monday morning, Dharapuram received heavy rain. Around 10 am, water started to leak inside the Anganwadi centre and spread on the floor. Parents of the children, who came to know about this, rushed there and took the children back home.
M Mansoor, a resident in the area, said, “This issue has been happening for the last two years. Every time it rains, water leaks into the building. We fear the building may collapse due to this. We have already urged the Anganwadi staff and Dharapuram Municipality to resolve this issue but they are very careless. This Anganwadi building should be demolished and a new one should be built. Until then, the centre should be shifted to a temporary alternative building. Otherwise, we will soon take up a struggle.”
Speaking to TNIE, K Pappukanan, chairperson of Dharapuram Municipality, said, “Anganwadi buildings do not come under us. However, in the interest of the public, we floated a tender last week for the renovation of seven anganwadi buildings within the municipality limit. The work will commence after the end of the rainy season.”
Officials from the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme in Tiruppur did not respond to TNIE’s calls for a comment on the matter.