ASHAs disperse from Secretariat gate on 266th day

The Hindu Bureau

Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) ended their round-the-clock agitation demanding better remuneration and retirement benefits, on the 266th day on Saturday, marking their struggle as one of the longest agitations waged by women workers in the State and one that would be remembered as an abiding symbol of forbearance and perseverance.

ASHAs ceremoniously dismantled their protest site and dispersed from the Secretariat gate, where they had been waging their agitation all these months, vowing to persevere and carry on with their fight to secure their demand for minimum daily wages of ₹700 . ASHAs will continue their agitation at the district-level and they will also campaign actively, raising their demands, at the upcoming local body elections.

The Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan, who spoke at the rally organised on the final day, hailed the movement as a “magnificent victory of women’s power.” and said that their struggle would ultimately triumph. He said that if UDF gets an opportunity to form the government in 2026, a decision on ASHA workers’ demands will be taken at its very first Cabinet meeting

Agitating under the banner of the Kerala ASHA Health Workers Association, the main demands raised were the hike in honorarium of ASHAs to ₹21,000, one-time retirement benefits of ₹ 5 lakh and withdrawal of all restrictive conditions linked to the honorarium.

The protest which began on February 10 had continued through pouring rains and scorching heat, with the women relentlessly organising and re-grouping every time to persevere with their strike

Though the main demands of the agitation remain unattained, the 266-day-long struggle has handed them many other wins, including bringing the issue of ASHAs’ strike to both Houses of the Parliament and hitting national and international headlines on the unusual perseverance of women workers.

Following this, the Central Government announced an increase in incentives and other benefits for ASHA workers across the country — a significant victory credited to the Kerala protest.

ASHAs pledged on Saturday to continue their agitation, till they were served justice. They will again re-group before the Secretariat on February 10 next year to mark the first year of their unprecedented agitation