
Amaravati: Tribal and Women Child Welfare Minister Gummidi Sandhyarani announced the appointment of new Auxiliary Nurse Midwives (ANMs) to oversee the health of students in 543 ashram schools and post-metric hostels in tribal areas. Despite their removal by the previous Vaikapa government, Sandhyarani emphasized the reinstatement of ANMs, who will now provide continuous health monitoring, with doctors visiting monthly to prepare health cards. Sandhyarani, who assumed her ministerial role on Monday, also signed off on the distribution of nutritious food in Anganwadi centers.
Until new ANMs are appointed, current health center ANMs will be deputed to hostels, particularly to address health concerns during the rainy season. The minister underscored that these steps had already been communicated to the Chief Minister.
Reflecting on her new role, Sandhyarani highlighted her commitment to addressing malnutrition among pregnant women, children, and tribals. She vowed to tackle issues faced by Anganwadi staff and to restore tribal pregnant women’s dormitories disabled by the previous government. She also mentioned plans to make feeder ambulances fully available to alleviate the hardships faced by patients and pregnant women.
However, the minister’s inauguration saw a notable absence of top officials from the Women and Child Welfare Department, sparking debate about departmental support.