MADURAI: Despite several petitions seeking renovation, the Anganwadi centre in Kidaripatti in Melur block wears a dilapidated look due to the deteriorating building and lack of basic facilities for children. The centre is set up on a small veranda of the house, which has no doors and windows and hosts 20 children between the age of two and five.
The kitchen and the floor cladded in cow dung, for children to sit in, are located in close quarters without an ample amount of space. The unpainted sand wall has taken a lot of damage over the years and the building does not even have toilets or water facilities.
“If any student urinates on the floor, other children may not have space to sit. Teaching the students is a difficult task in such situations,” said sources.
Speaking to The New Indian Express, CPM(L) party East Union Secretary A Malligarani said the children are staying in a dangerous place with the menace of rats and leaking roof tiles. “If one child is affected with common cold and fever, it may spread. In the past, the Anganwadi centre has declared a holiday because of continuous rain. The only silver lining is that as per Tamil Nadu government’s order, morning breakfast is provided here,” she said, adding that a petition submitted to the East Union Office to shift the place went in vain.
Responding to the issue, on request for anonymity, an official said that the Anganwadi centre is functioning over the last 10 years, and as per rules it needs to be in a rented building until it gets a new government building.