SRINAGAR: Scores of Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) workers on Tuesday staged a protest in Srinagar, demanding formal ASHA worker status, implementation of the Minimum Wages Act, and enhancement of what they described as a meagre honorarium.
Raising slogans and holding placards, the protesting workers said they were performing critical duties in the healthcare system but continued to be treated unfairly in terms of wages and recognition. They said their role in grassroots healthcare delivery was being overlooked despite repeated assurances.
Addressing the protesters, ASHA Workers Union president Shaheena Akhtar said the workers were demanding regularisation of their status as ASHA workers and legal protection under the Minimum Wages Act. She said the present honorarium was insufficient to meet basic household expenses.
Shaheena Akhtar said ASHA workers were involved in vaccination drives, maternal and child healthcare, disease surveillance and other public health programmes, yet their financial condition remained precarious. She said the workers had been forced to take to the streets after their demands were ignored for years.
The protesting ASHA workers said they were struggling to manage rising costs of living on the existing payments and urged the government to announce a substantial increase in wages along with social security benefits.
They warned that if their demands were not addressed at the earliest, the agitation would be intensified in the coming days. The protest remained peaceful, with workers appealing to the authorities to initiate dialogue and resolve the issue without further delay. [KNT]
