The Anganwadi in Odisha’s Kendrapara district has not been functioning for nearly three months. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement The nationwide outrage triggered by the three-month boycott of an Anganwadi centre following the appointment of a Dalit woman appears to have had little impact on the villagers, who skipped a meeting convened by the Kendrapara district administration in Odisha to resolve the crisis amicably on Wednesday (February 11, 2026). 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 kids to Anganwadi centre after Sharmista Sethy, a 20-year-old graduate from the Dalit community, was given appointment as helper-cum-cook. “We want villagers to send their children to Anganwadi centre as the absence is affecting their pre-school learning as well as healthy diets, as the government provides free of cost. However, only Sarpanch and ward member (elected representatives) and two villagers turned up for meeting,” said Deepali Mishra, Child Development Project Officer (CDPO). According to sources, villagers are not attributing …