In a case of sheer social discrimination, upper-caste parents in Odisha’s Kendrapara district have stopped sending their children to a local Anganwadi centre for nearly three months. The boycott began following the recruitment of a Dalit woman as a helper at the pre-learning centre, a district official said.
The Nuagaon Anganwadi centre in the Ghalimala gram panchayat under Rajnagar police station limits previously saw regular attendance from approximately 20 children, all belonging to upper-caste families. However, attendance dropped to zero on November 21, 2025, shortly after the new helper joined the Anganwadi.
After receiving the information, the district administration stepped in to amicably settle the ongoing dispute by deputing a high-level team to Nuagaon village.
Kendrapara Collector Raghuram R. Iyer stated that a high-level team, led by the District Social Welfare Officer, has been dispatched to the village to investigate the allegations and seek an amicable resolution.
Sharmistha Sethy, the helper at the centre, expressed her distress over the situation. “I have become a victim of caste bias. I was the sole applicant when the advertisement for the helper position was released, and I was appointed in November 2025,” she said.
Sethy alleged that parents have openly opposed her engagement solely on the grounds of her caste.
Iyer further stated, “It is alleged that a section of people are opposing the engagement of a helper, who belongs to the scheduled caste community.”
Iyer informed that officials are ascertaining whether the incident is linked to the caste factor.
