New Delhi: The ongoing indefinite strike by ASHA workers in Kerala was raised in the Lok Sabha by MPs from the state on Monday, who called for better wages and job security for the community health workers.
Congress MPs KC Venugopal, Shashi Tharoor, and VK Sreekandan brought up the issue during the Zero Hour, urging immediate government action.
Tharoor said ASHA workers are the “unsung heroes” of India’s healthcare system, especially for their contributions during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Despite working 12-14 hours a day, they are still classified as volunteers and receive only meagre honorariums. In Kerala, they earn just ₹7,000 per month, and even this is not paid on time. There is a systemic undervaluation of community health workers. Is their struggle being ignored just because they are women?” Tharoor said.
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KC Venugopal said ASHA workers are entitled to a daily wage of ₹233, but the Kerala government has not paid them in full.
“The central and state governments are blaming each other. Who is responsible for this? ASHA workers’ monthly salary should be fixed at ₹21,000, and they should receive retirement benefits. They have been protesting for over 30 days. All ASHA workers are part of this agitation. They are the health warriors of society. It was the UPA government that introduced the ASHA worker scheme in 2005. Telangana, Karnataka, and Sikkim have increased their salaries. However, ASHA workers in Kerala are forced to retire with nothing in hand. The Union health minister must respond to this issue,” Venugopal said.
Venugopal also called for urgent intervention from the Union government to address the ASHA workers’ concerns, listing demands that include an increase in the honorarium to ₹21,000, a fixed retirement age, a ₹5 lakh retirement benefit, and fixed working hours to prevent exploitation.
VK Sreekandan said ASHA workers in Kerala are fighting for basic demands such as increased remuneration of ₹21,000, permanent employment status, and a pension of ₹5 lakh upon retirement. “These are reasonable demands. But the government has not initiated any discussions on the matter,” he said.
Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) MP, N K Premchandran, also raised the issue of the ASHA workers’ plight and their ongoing agitation, which completed one month on Monday.
Former National Commission for Women (NCW) chairperson Rekha Sharma also addressed the matter in the Rajya Sabha, saying ASHA workers are not receiving wages that reflect the significance of their work. She urged the central government to intervene immediately, saying ASHA workers should not be pushed into distress.