Chandigarh: Sangrur MP Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer of the Aam Aadmi Party raised several pressing issues while speaking on the Supplementary Demands in Parliament. He demanded that Anganwadi workers and helpers be regularised and their meagre honorarium increased, highlighting that workers currently receive only ₹4,500 and helpers ₹2,250. Meet Hayer urged the government to fix permanent salaries for these essential workers who play a critical role in child development.
Referring to the recent devastating floods in Punjab, Meet Hayer said the state suffered losses of around ₹20,000 crore and basic infrastructure was badly damaged. He noted that while the Prime Minister announced a flood relief package of ₹1,600 crore, nothing has been received so far. He demanded that the Centre release ₹20,000 crore in addition to the announced package to compensate for the actual damages. He also highlighted the need for new ration cards under the Public Distribution System, citing population growth and the lack of a census since 2011.
Meet Hayer also raised concerns about discrimination in sports grants, noting that Punjab was sidelined in Khelo India allocations despite producing several Olympic medalists, while states like Gujarat received crores despite not winning medals in the 2024 Paris Olympics. He urged that sports grants should be allocated based on performance and flagged that no provisions were made for sports in the upcoming Commonwealth Games 2030 supplementary grants.
