The Congress-led UDF showed support for the Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) who started an indefinite hunger strike in Thiruvananthapuram. They are protesting against the state government to demand better pay and retirement benefits. The hunger strike began at 11 am, right after the discussions with officials from the National Health Mission (NHM) and Health Minister Veena George did not end well.
For over a month, many ASHAs have been asking for their monthly pay to increase from ₹7,000 to ₹21,000 and for retirement benefits of ₹5 lakh when they stop working. On Thursday, UDF MLAs, led by the Leader of Opposition VD Satheesan, left the assembly to join the ASHAs at their protest site. They promised to support the ASHAs in their fight. VD Satheesan said, “The Centre needs to increase its incentives, and the state must raise the honorarium for ASHAs. Many unskilled workers in our state earn about ₹700 a day, so the activists deserve better pay for their hard work. It’s sad to see even ministers making fun of them. We are here to support their genuine cause.”
Meanwhile, Health Minister Veena George traveled to Delhi to request a meeting with Union Minister JP Nadda. She claimed that the ASHAs’ demand to raise their honorarium instead of the incentives points to “clear politics.” While the state pays the honorarium, the incentives are shared between the state and central government in a ratio of 40:60. She noted that there has not been a single increase in incentives from the Union government since 2005-06. Minister George said she would also discuss long-overdue demands for an AIIMS hospital, new medical colleges in Kasaragod and Wayanad, and the Union government’s contributions to central schemes for the financial year 2023-24 with Nadda.
Leave a Reply