Manipur ashas, anganwadi workers to join nationwide strike on Sep. 24

Our Correspondent
Imphal, Sep. 9 (EMN): The All Manipur Accredited Social Health Activist (Asha) Workers’ Union and anganwadi workers’s body have demanded regularisation of the scheme workers including the asha and anganwadi workers besides increasing their honorariums in the state.

Speaking to reporters in Imphal today, N Binodini Devi of Asha workers’ Union said that they would be joining the all Indian strike of scheme workers on September 24 for safety gear, risk allowance and death compensation during the pandemic regularising minimum wage, social security and pension to frontline scheme workers.

The union also demands a minimum of INR 10,000 as performance linked incentive for the scheme workers in the state. Presently asha workers in Manipur are getting an average of INR 1500 to 2000 as performance linked incentive while monthly allowance for the anganwadi workers is INR  4500.

Claiming that various important welfare programmes and services were being initiated by them at grassroots level, she expressed the need to increase the honorarium for scheme workers without delay.

Stating that the authority was not providing neither the fuel charge nor travel allowance for asha workers in the state, she said the union was also demanding protective gear for the scheme workers besides urging to provide the Covid risk allowance for all contract and scheme workers engaged in Covid duty.

The other demands include enactment of legislation for rights to universal health care as in case of rights of food and right to education.

Presently there are 4004 asha workers including 3928 in the rural and 81 in urban areas particularly during the current Covid pandemic. Churachandpur district (549) has the maximum number of ashas while Jiribam(57) has the minimum.

On the other hand, as per the reports of the Manipur Social Welfare department, there are 11, 510 anganwadi centres in Manipur, out of which 9958 are main anganwadi centres and 1552 are mini anganwadi centres.