When anganwadi worker’s son becomes IAS officer: How Thrissur Collector revamped the system that raised him

“I have been closely associated with anganwadis and have great regard for their workers. I used to go to the anganawadi where my mother worked. She is my role model. Even now, when I go to my native village of Elappura in Idukki, I spend time with children at the local anganwadi,” said the Collector, whose father, C Pandian, is a farmer.

In a period of less than two years, he has launched child-centric and community-oriented programmes through anganwadis in Thrissur district.

“These are the public institutions of a village. Hence, I decided to introduce the library system at anganwadis to help elders and students develop reading habits. Books were mobilised through CSR funds, as well as through contributions from the public. So far, we have set up 15 such libraries, and another 15 are in the process under the programme titled ‘Va Vayikkam (Come, Let Us Read)’. The project will be rolled out to more centres. Now, several panchayats have come forward to transform anganwadis into community centres,” he said.

There were 300 anganwadis in the district without their own building and other facilities. With the Collector’s initiative, 20 of these centres have now got their own infrastructure, while the formalities for another 50 to get the same have been completed.

At Arimbur panchayat, the local anganwadi was named “Collector’s Dream”, as a tribute to the officer who solved the infrastructure problem.

“Efforts are on to find land for the other remaining anganwadis. I have formed a taluk-level review committee, comprising various stakeholder departments, to evaluate the progress every month,” he said.

He also has weekly interactions with schoolchildren. “Every week, I interact with 20 students each from various parts of the district. So far, 53 such interactions have been completed in my chamber. Children share their views during such meetings,” he said.

Before becoming an IAS officer on his second attempt, Pandian, a B.Tech graduate, worked in the IT sector for two-and-a-half years. During his time in college, Pandian also used to work at a tea estate.

Around 150 km away from Thrissur, his mother, S Usha Kumari, is busy at Anganwadi Number 46 at Elappara Panchayat in Idukki.

She said, “My son used to ask me about our problems at anganwadis. I started as an anganwadi teacher after Arjun went to school. My dream is to have my son at the helm of the Women and Child Development Department, which looks after anganwadis. I want to work under my son.”

On Tuesday, when Kerala Health Minister Veena George conferred the Best Collector award to Pandian, Usha Kumari was also present. The minister said, “It was a rare occasion. The son’s work in the district is also a tribute to the community represented by his mother.”