Bengaluru: The indefinite protest by thousands of anganwadi workers, demanding a hike in their salaries from Rs 6,000 to Rs 10,000, entered the second day on Tuesday.

Though Chief Minister Siddaramaiah promised them that he would look into their demands after April 19 after the by-elections to Nanjangud and Gundlupet are over, the protesters refused to budge from the Freedom Park.

Twenty-eight-year-old Kharoonbe, an anganwadi worker for the last six years, has travelled over 300 km from Tekkalakote in Ballari with her three-year-old child Rabiya Bashura to fight for their cause.

Like Kharoonbe, hundreds of other women protesters too have come with their children and are staging the sit-in, though they don’t have proper toilets, drinking water or food.

Kharoonbe said, “I had packed some rotis and pickle. If it gets over, I don’t have any money to buy food. This is our plight. But the government has been neglecting us for far too long. Even to attend nature’s call, we have to go to the pay-and-use public toilet nearby.”

With hardly any facilities, the protesters are sleeping on Sheshadri Road in front of Freedom Park without mats or blankets. “This is just a temporary inconvenience and we have come here for a permanent solution to our problems,” the protesters said.

They complained that while their working hours have gone up from six hours to eight, they are paid the same salary. “Apart from the anganwadi work, we are also burdened with the Integrated Child Development Scheme (to help children and pregnant women) and census work. The government uses us for implementing various other schemes, like Bhagyalakshmi to help the girl child, organising Stree Shakthi groups and many others. Are we not human? Don’t we deserve the salary to compensate our work,” they asked.

Varalakshmi S., president, Karnataka State Anganwadi Workers' Association, said, “While the workload on Anganwadi workers has been increasing, the pay has remained meagre. How can anyone run a family with just Rs 6,000? This has been continuing for the last 41 years, since 1975. We have been overworked and underpaid. There is no question of withdrawing the protest till our demands are met.”