Thiruvananthapuram | A group of ASHA workers, who had been holding a long relay protest demanding an increase in their monthly honorarium to Rs 21,000, on Monday thanked the newly sworn-in Chief Minister of Kerala, V D Satheesan, for raising their monthly honorarium by Rs 3,000.
The decision to increase the honorarium was taken at the first Cabinet meeting of the UDF government, which was sworn in on Monday. With this hike, ASHA workers will now receive a monthly honorarium of Rs 12,000.
Leaders of the ASHA workers' protest committee, M A Bindu and S Mini, told the media here that they would organise a larger gathering in front of the Secretariat to mark the victory of their historic protest.
"V D Satheesan, when he was the Opposition Leader, came to our protest venue and assured us that once the UDF came to power in 2026, our issue would be addressed in the very first Cabinet meeting. Yesterday, he kept his word and increased our honorarium by Rs 3,000. He has also said that our demand for a monthly honorarium of Rs 21,000 would be met in phases," Bindu told reporters.
She said the chief minister had also assured them that he would consider their demands regarding retirement benefits in due course.
The leaders also lashed out at former finance minister K N Balagopal over his remarks, accusing him of insulting the ASHA workers' protest both during his tenure in government and even after the new government agreed to address their concerns.
Hours after the new government announced a Rs 3,000 increase in the honorarium of ASHA workers, Balagopal had criticised the move, saying it fell short of the promises made by the Congress-led front during the Assembly election campaign.
"Former finance minister's statement is cheap. He said the new chief minister's offer was like a mountain delivering a mole. But he should understand that any delivery is painful, and his government had many years for a similar delivery but never accomplished it," Bindu said.
She said the statements and insults made by LDF leaders against ASHA workers were among the reasons for the Left's heavy defeat in Kerala.
When asked how the ASHA leaders would respond if the UDF government failed to fulfil its promise of increasing the honorarium to Rs 21,000, Bindu said they would analyse the situation and take an appropriate decision.
During the LDF's 10 years in power, the honorarium for ASHA workers increased from Rs 1,000 to Rs 9,000. The workers, however, staged a 265-day relay protest demanding that the monthly honorarium be raised to Rs 21,000 and that a solatium of Rs 5 lakh be provided upon retirement.