Anganwadi worker who helped keep her village COVID-free to be feted

When hundreds of migrants fromher village in Madhya Pradesh's Sheopur district returnedduring lockdown, Nazira Khan, an Anganwadi worker, ensuredthat they followed quarantine and those who were sick gottreatment.

Her family thought it was dangerous work and wantedher to quit, but she did not budge. Now the NationalCommission for Women would be felicitating her as a `COVIDWoman Warrior' in New Delhi on January 31.

Union Minister for Women and Child Development SmritiIrani will felicitate Khan during a ceremony on the NCW'sfoundation day, a Madhya Pradesh public relations departmentofficial said on Friday.

Khan, resident of Hiragaon in Sheopur district, worksat the local Anganwadi (government-run child care centre).

Nearly a thousand persons from the village who workedin big cities returned when lockdown for coronavirus came intoeffect, she told reporters.

It was necessary to quarantine them for the safety ofthe entire village, she said.

With the help of the village sarpanch, she ensuredthat those who had returned from cities were properlyquarantined and those who were sick got treatment andmedicines.

Her family feared that she would catch the infectionand wanted her to quit. Khan herself suffered a bout of dengueduring this period, the official said.

But her husband supported her and she did not quit herjob.

''Because of her efforts, today the entire village isfree from coronavirus,'' the official said.