EMN
Dimapur, March 11
A training programme for rural welfare workers such as Angawadi workers and helpers, Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHAs), Adhaar and community volunteers was conducted on March 11 by the World Vision and Ministry of Information & Broadcasting Field Publicity in Totok Chingnyu Baptist Church in Mon district.
A “special outreach programme” about centrally-sponsored schemes was also organized coinciding with the event.
During the event, a welfare functionary Nockyam Wangnao talked about the joint training programme and said that the main objective of the event was to “rededicate ourselves to serve for the welfare of the community.” He appealed to the village leaders and health workers to know their respective duties and responsibility to build a healthy society and added ‘in order to build a healthy society we require healthy people, and to develop a healthy people we need to nurture for healthy children’.
Also, briefing on various centrally sponsored schemes were given during the event. The schemes included the Swatchh Bharat Abhiyan, Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, Beti Bachao/Beti Padao, Pradhan Mantri Surakhsa Bima Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana, Atal Pension Yojana and Skill India Mission.
Field Publicity Officer Mathew SK Bengam said in his speech that the directorate of Field Publicity was the mediator and communicator between the central government and the public. He informed that the main objective of the Ministry of Field Publicity was to propagate the policies and programmes of various centrally sponsored schemes and programmes at the grass root level and to ensure that it reached the targeted beneficiaries. It is also to ‘do away with corruptions,’ he explained.
Bengam also said that the joint programmes of the World Vision, Social Welfare department, and the NRHM and Field Publicity have the same mission to work for community development.
He urged the participants to disseminate information to the people back at home.
He also distributed tee-shirts to all the participants.
Speaking on the duties and functions of the Angawadi workers and helpers, the Child Development Officer of Mon district Tongwang Konyak said that the Angawadi centres should not be centers of distribution of foodstuffs but should be ‘centers of all-round development of a child before schooling.’ The official urged the workers and helpers to ‘develop love, affection and good relationship with every child to cater the needs of the children.’
Highlighting that the ICDS was a community-based programme, Konyak appealed to the village functionaries to see that the Angawadi centers function ‘properly for the development of every child in the village and at the same time to report the performance of workers and helpers.’ Asserting that the teachers and pastors of the community were ‘well-informed intellectuals,’ he said they should play a vital role to educate the villagers and to ‘ensure that all-round development is implemented in the village.’
He urged the functionaries of three Totok villages to make their Angawadi centres ‘model centres for learning.’
During the event, Block Programme Officer of the NRHM Hingkai spoke on the duties and functions of the Asha workers while Supervisor Longshitheong spoke about maintenance of registers of the Angawadi workers. The programme concluded a discussion and evaluation session.
