Friday, 13 August 2021 | PNS | Dehradun
Women of self-help groups protested against the State government for inviting tenders of private contractors for the packaging and supply of take home ration (THR) which will snatch the livelihood of over two lakh women in Uttarakhand. On Thursday, hundreds of women protested outside the office of the Women Empowerment and Child Development (WECD) department located at Nanda Ki Chowki.
According to the president of Nari Shakti Swaroop Mahila Pradesh Sangathan (NSSMPS), Geeta Maurya, the women of SHGs are working for THR packaging and supply for the last eight years under the National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM) but now the government has invited e-tenders for this work from private contractors. “The government here talks about vocal for local campaign, women empowerment and development of underprivileged and rural women but the same government is ready to make lakhs of women unemployed by allocating Rs 560 crore to privatise this work through big companies,” said Maurya. Maurya said that she and Shyama Devi were recently felicitated with the Tilu Rauteli award by the chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami for their work in THR and now he is snatching that work. “We even met him to return this award recently as it does not mean anything if we cannot continue our work. The CM said he will consider our appeal against inviting the e-tender and gaver our awards back to us but he obviously did not keep his word,” stated Maurya.
One of the protestors, Pooja Dwivedi said that most of the women associated with THR works are underprivileged, widows and some mothers who work to feed their disabled children and the government is snatching their livelihood. She said, “We have approached the state government politely many times to cancel this e-tender but we will be forced to intensify our protest if the government fails to do so soon.” The women protestors said the officials are telling the SHGs that the ration provided to kids in THR is not nutritious enough. “The government officials decide what should be in the menu of THR and we provide the same to the Anganwadi centres so blaming us is illogical. We have been informed that the government will now provide THR in powdered form like a protein shake powder which is certainly not healthier than the food provided by the SHGs under the department,” said Dwivedi.
The protestors said they will march towards the Secretariat on Friday and threatened that they will not let this government win in 2022 assembly elections if they lose their livelihood.
