Bengaluru: Thousands of ASHA workers on Monday participated in a statewide online protest demanding an immediate solution to their problems in Karnataka.
The protest was held under the banner of the All India United Trade Union Centre (AIUTUC).
They held placards and posters to express their anger and demanded the government's intervention on their demands including Covid Risk Allowance, Covid treatment aid, the release of pending remuneration of Rs 4,000 among others.
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K. Somashekar Yadgiri, State President of Karnataka Rajya Samyuktha ASHA Karyakarte Sangha from Yadgiri, along with D Nagalakshmi, State Secretary from Bellary, Rama TC, State Vice-President from Bangalore, D Umadevi from Yadgiri, and Sandhya PS, State Treasurer from Mysore and others joined the protest to raise their voices.
In a statement Karnataka Rajya Samyuktha ASHA Karyakarte Sangha said that amid a raging pandemic where most of the population in the state is experiencing huge health distress due to Covid-19 with many developing severe symptoms, ASHA workers have been relentless in reaching out to each of them, providing them with proper awareness and making them abreast of the necessary precautions and measures to be taken, thus playing a significant role in helping people fight the pandemic.
"From conducting house to house surveillance of influenza-like illness (ILI) and severe acute respiratory infections (SARI), distributing the necessary medicines, distributing Covid kits to patients, bringing covid suspected patients to healthcare centres, regularly conducting house to house health surveys and updating the same to the department, identifying primary-secondary contacts, etc, ASHA workers are deployed in several other works apart from their designated tasks," the organisation added.
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"In many cases, ASHA workers are being compelled to work in shifts at various vaccination centres and told to take swab tests of covid suspected patients. Upon failing to oblige to a certain task they are told to quit their job thus managing their tasks under tiring conditions," it maintained.
Highlighting these points, the organization demanded the release of Rs 5000 as Covid Risk Allowance for all ASHA workers as announced for other frontline warriors across the state. It also demanded a financial aid of a minimum of Rs 25,000 for Covid positive ASHA workers to meet the expenses of their treatment.
ASHA workers demanded a sufficient supply of masks, hand sanitisers, gloves and necessary safety equipment for all ASHA workers across the state and immediate release of pending remuneration of Rs 4,000 for all ASHA workers along with the release of Rs. 50 lakh insurance compensation for those ASHA workers who had succumbed during the first Covid-19 wave.
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