Kannur Anganwadi workers suspended over negligence in handling toddler’s injury

Kannur: The Women and Child Welfare Department suspended two Anganwadi workers on Friday following an incident in which a three-and-a-half-year-old sustained severe injuries after falling and hitting his head at the Ezhom Vedippan Chal Anganwadi premises near Pazhayangadi, on Thursday.  

The boy's family has accused Anganwadi employees of a serious lapse in not providing him with treatment and informing the family on time. The suspension is based on the initial reports of negligence.

The toddler, Rigved, was playing at the Anganwadi when the accident occurred at noon. Instead of immediately taking him to the hospital, the employees applied some medicine to his head wound and sent him home with a relative in the afternoon.

Later in the evening, Rigved developed a fever and was rushed to Pazhayangadi Taluk Hospital. The toddler was transferred to Pariyaram and then Kozhikode Medical College Hospitals due to worsening internal bleeding.

"The Anganwadi employees acted irresponsibly," Rigved's father, S Dhanesh, told Onmanorama. "They failed to inform us promptly about the seriousness of the accident. We only learned about it in the afternoon, and they didn't even take him to a hospital." Dhanesh added that Rigved had sustained an injury earlier at the Anganwadi, and the employees had informed them on time.

The Pazhayangadi police have initiated an inquiry into the incident. Women and Child Welfare Minister Veena George has intervened, instructing the department director to conduct an immediate investigation.