Villagers skip meeting convened by Odisha govt over Anganwadi boycott row

The nationwide outrage triggered by a three-month boycott of an Anganwadi center following the appointment of a Dalit woman appears to have had little impact on villagers who skipped a meeting called by the Kendrapara district administration in Odisha on Wednesday (February 11, 2026) to resolve the crisis amicably.

A team of district-level officials led by Kendrapara Sub-Collector had visited Nuagaon village under Ghadiamal gram panchayat in Rajnagar block, where villagers had stopped sending their children to the Anganwadi centre, following the appointment of Sharmista Sethy, a 20-year-old graduate from the Dalit community, as an assistant cook.

Child Development Project Officer (CDPO) Deepali Mishra said, “We want the villagers to send their children to the Anganwadi centre, as the government provides it free of cost, as absenteeism affects their pre-school education and healthy diet. But only the Sarpanch and the ward member (elected representatives) and two villagers attended the meeting.”

According to sources, the villagers do not give any reason for their boycott because they think that the boycott will cause legal problems. However, a senior official who mobilized the villagers for an amicable solution said that casteism was said to be the root cause of the boycott.

“We have asked the Sarpanch and the ward members to hold talks with the villagers and convince them not to boycott the Anganwadi. It was emphasized that normalcy should return to the Anganwadi as soon as possible,” Ms. Misrha said.

Ms. Sethy, who was the only candidate as assistant cook at the Anganwadi centre, was appointed on November 20, 2025. After his appointment, parents stopped sending him to the Center. The 20-year-old woman begged the villagers to send her children away, but no one listened. It should be noted that the woman hails from the same Nuagaon village.

The district administration had made it clear that the appointment would not be withdrawn under any circumstances.