Lok Sabha Question No. 1297 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-02-06
Subject: Anganwadi-Cum-Creche Centres in Bihar
Ministry: WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: Shri Manoj Kumar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO: 1297

## TO BE ANSWERED ON 06.02.2026

## ANGANWADI-CUM-CRECHE CENTRES IN BIHAR

## 1297.    SHRI MANOJ KUMAR:

Will the Minister of Women and Child Development be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has set a target to open 17,000 Anganwadi-cum-creches by 2026 and if so, the details thereof and effort made to achieve this target, State/UT-wise;
- (b) the number of Anganwadi-cum-creches sanctioned and the number out of them made functional so far, State/UT-wise;
- (c) whether the progress in commissioning these facilities is slow, particularly in the State of Bihar, if so, the details thereof;
- (d) whether the incentives/salary of Anganwadi workers are very low and even less than the wages paid to unskilled labourers in the State of Bihar, if so, the reasons therefor; and
- (e) the steps taken/being taken by the Union Government to increase the incentive/salary of Anganwadi workers, particularly in the State of Bihar?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT (SHRIMATI ANNPURNA DEVI)

(a) to (e):    The Ministry of women and Child Development has introduced Palna Scheme under the Samarthya Vertical of Umbrella Mission Shakti for all States and UTs w.e.f. 1st April, 2022 to provide day care facilities and protection to children.

Government's sustained initiatives on education, skilling and employment of women have resulted in increased opportunities for their employment, and more and more women are now in gainful employment, working within or outside their homes. Lack of proper day-care services is, often, a deterrent for women to go out and work. Hence, there is an urgent need for improved quality and reach of day care services/crèches for working women amongst all socioeconomic groups both in the organized and unorganized sectors.

To address these difficulties faced by the working mothers in giving due child care and protection to their children, day-care crèche facilities are being provided through Palna

Scheme. Crèche services formalise the child care responsibilities hitherto considered as part of domestic work. Formalization of care work supports the 'decent work campaign' to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal 8 -Decent work and economic growth. This will also enable more mothers, who will be free from unpaid child-care responsibilities, to take up gainful employment.

During  15 th Finance  Commission,  17,000  AWCCs  have  been  envisioned  to  be  set up.  States/UTs are encouraged to submit proposals for opening more Anganwadi-cum-Creches (AWCCs) in the Programme Approval Board (PAB) meetings which are held with the State Governments and UT Administrations annually. In the PAB meetings, proposed AWCCs are approved and it is emphasised to operationalize the approved AWCCs. As on 31.01.2026, a total of 14,599 AWCCs are approved and out of them, 2820 AWCCs are functional across the country.  List of AWCCs (State/UT wise) is at Annexure.

Presently, Anganwadi Workers (AWWs) and Anganwadi Helpers (AWHs) are given Honorarium @ Rs.4,500/- per month and Rs.2,250/- per month respectively as per the defined cost sharing ratio between the Centre & States/UTs under Mission Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan. Additional amount of Rs. 1500 per month is also admissible to Anganwadi workers and Rs. 750 per month to Anganwadi helpers engaged in Anganwadi-Cum-Creche Centres (AWCCs).

A performance linked incentive of Rs.500/- is also provided to AWWs and Rs.250/per month to AWHs. To incentivize and encourage the AWWs and AWHs, various initiatives and social security measures have been undertaken including the following:

- i. Under Mission Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0, promotional opportunities for Anganwadi Workers have been enhanced. 50% posts of Anganwadi Workers are to be filled by Anganwadi Helpers with 5 years of experience and 50% posts of Supervisors are to be filled by promotion of Anganwadi Workers with 5 years of experience subject to fulfilment of other criteria.
- ii. 20 days annual leave and paid maternity absence of 180 days, paid absence on abortion/ miscarriage once for 45 days.
- iii. State Governments and UT Administrations have been requested to encourage eligible AWWs and AWHs to get themselves enrolled under the Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maandhan (PM-SYM) Pension Scheme, which is a voluntary and contributory pension scheme for the unorganized sectors in the country to ensure old age protection.
- iv. Insurance  benefits  have  been  provided  to  Anganwadi  Workers  and  Helpers  under Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY) for life cover worth Rs.2.00 lakh (covers life risk, death due to any reason) in the age group of 18 to 50 years and under Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana for accidental cover of Rs.2.00 Lakh (accidental death and permanent full disability) / Rs.1.00 Lakh (partial but permanent disability) in the age group of 18-59 years.
- v. Annual Healthcare coverage of Rs. 5 Lakhs under Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) to all Anganwadi workers and helpers in pursuance to budget announcement in FY 2024-25.

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ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN THE REPLY TO PARTS (A) TO (E) OF THE LOK SABHA  UNSTARRED  QUESTION  NO.  1297  FOR  ANSWER  ON  06.02.2026 REGARDING  'ANGANWADI -CUMCRECHE  CENTRES  IN  BIHAR' BY  SHRI MANOJ KUMAR, HON'BLE MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT (LS).

|   Sl.No | State/UTs                                |   Approved AWCCs |   Operational AWCCs |
|---------|------------------------------------------|------------------|---------------------|
|       1 | Andaman and Nicobar Islands              |                8 |                   7 |
|       2 | Andhra Pradesh                           |              108 |                   0 |
|       3 | Arunachal Pradesh                        |               86 |                  43 |
|       4 | Assam                                    |              500 |                  50 |
|       5 | Bihar                                    |              504 |                  85 |
|       6 | Chandigarh                               |              210 |                 210 |
|       7 | Chhattisgarh                             |             1500 |                 205 |
|       8 | Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu |              190 |                  68 |
|       9 | Delhi                                    |              502 |                 502 |
|      10 | Goa                                      |               11 |                   9 |
|      11 | Gujarat                                  |               25 |                   0 |
|      12 | Haryana                                  |              628 |                 290 |
|      13 | Himachal Pradesh                         |              152 |                   0 |
|      14 | Jammu and Kashmir                        |              317 |                   0 |
|      15 | Jharkhand                                |             1024 |                  80 |
|      16 | Karnataka                                |             1664 |                 248 |
|      17 | Kerala                                   |              504 |                 129 |
|      18 | Ladakh                                   |                7 |                   6 |
|      19 | Lakshadweep                              |                8 |                   0 |
|      20 | Madhya Pradesh                           |              448 |                   0 |
|      21 | Maharashtra                              |              345 |                   0 |
|      22 | Manipur                                  |              702 |                   0 |
|      23 | Meghalaya                                |             1238 |                  84 |
|      24 | Mizoram                                  |              200 |                 200 |
|      25 | Nagaland                                 |              500 |                 270 |
|      26 | Odisha                                   |             1000 |                   0 |
|      27 | Puducherry                               |               86 |                   9 |
|      28 | Punjab                                   |              148 |                 144 |
|      29 | Sikkim                                   |               25 |                  25 |
|      30 | Tamil Nadu                               |              600 |                   0 |
|      31 | Telangana                                |             1033 |                   8 |
|      32 | Tripura                                  |              114 |                 114 |
|      33 | Uttarakhand                              |              202 |                  34 |
|      34 | West Bengal                              |               10 |                   0 |

No proposal received from Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh during PAB

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