Hyderabad: ASHA workers threaten indefinite strike over unmet demands

Hyderabad: Demanding the state government to issue a government order during the present winter session of the Assembly implementing fixed wages of Rs 18,000 per month, the Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA workers) warned the state government that if it failed to meet their demands by the budget sessions in February 2025, they will all go on an indefinite strike.The ASHA workers affiliated with the Centre for Indian Trade Unions (CITU) laid siege to the office of the commissioner of the medical and health department at Koti on Tuesday, December 10.They submitted a representation to the commissioner and had discussions with him on the 19 demands put forth by them.After discussing with the protesting ASHA workers, the joint director announced that implementing fixed wages was a policy decision that the government would have to take. He, however, assured them that the department would convey their demand before the health minister and would pursue that file.He assured ASHA workers that they will be allowed to avail holidays on Sundays and festivals from now onwards.On the issue of pending wages for the survey of leprosy and pulse polio for which the ASHA workers were yet to be paid, he said that 25 percent of those wages have been paid, and the rest of the money will be paid sooner or later.The ASHA workers made it clear that they would not conduct any more surveys if their pending wages weren’t paid immediately.He announced that ASHA workers would not have to carry TB sputum boxes anymore and that there wouldn’t be any fixed targets for delivery cases anymore.The ASHA workers demanded that the state government implement insurance cover of Rs 50 lakh, retirement settlement of Rs 2 lakh, ESI, and also Rs 50,000 for their last rites in the event of their death.CITU city secretary Jayalakshmi said that the ASHA workers will hold more protests starting December 17, which include bus yatras, padayatras, relay hunger-strikes in district headquarters and protests in front of the houses of MLAs, to exert pressure on the state government to fulfil their demands.