The ASHA workers of Bihar began to hold village-level meetings first to discuss their problems and form a consensus on issues. Then they met ASHA workers from other villages and decided to organize at the block level.
Pamphlets with 11 demands formed their Charter
of Demands, and these were distributed in different blocks to raise awareness.
The Block-level meets converged into District Conventions and then it was
unanimously decided that the process should culminate in some action programme at the State level so that the ASHA workers’ Association could have a
new identity and serve as a model for other States. Many ASHA workers with
different ideological moorings began to join the ASHA Workers’ Organization led
by the All-India Progressive Women’s Association. They chanted “Pagar Nahin to
Kaam Nahin” (No Wages, No Work) and decided to strike work on one day as a
token of protest on Pulse Polio Day.” We have made the Pulse Polio Programme of
the Government a success and also achieved 100% immunization in our areas; we
have brought down the Maternal Mortality and Infant Mortality rates. Why are we
being denied our rights? “Said the ASHA leaders and workers.
Not to be Cowed down, on the night of 20 June, 2015, the ASHA workers began
gathering at the Primary Health Centres and Civil Surgeons’ Offices. It was a
sight to see so many women health workers thronging for their strike action the
next day. On 21st the Pulse Polio Programme and other health services were
brought to a total standstill. Seeing the assertion of these ASHA workers, the District
Administration, instead of giving them a patient hearing, began to threaten
them saying their appointments would be cancelled and new recruits would be
taken in. False cases of disruption and vandalism was filed against them in the
local thanas, despite the fact that the ASHA workers had only been chanting
slogans and asking the Administration to forward their Memorandum with 11
demands to the Central Government. The Bihar Health Department began to collect
the names of the striking workers instead, and preparing lists of workers to be retrenched. Letters of
retrenchment started being prepared. But instead of retreating or getting
divided due to victimization, the workers’ unity became stronger in favor of
the one-day strike. Many Civil Surgeons began to send letters to the Government
to sort out the matter as soon as possible so that a major crisis could be
averted. The pressure worked and the same administration who had said one month
back that they had nothing to do with the NRHM, realised that they would have
to call the ASHAs for talks and discuss their problems. On 24th July the Bihar
ASHA Workers’ Association along with the Bihar State Employees’ Association and
All India Central Council of Trade Unions were invited by the Chief Secretary
of the Health Department. A seven-member Committee to fix a proper monthly wage
for the ASHA workers was set up. Among the other demands conceded were-cycles
for all ASHA workers, rest rooms with toilets at the PHCs, disbursement of
pending incentives, raising the incentives, which had remained stagnant for the
past 10 years, setting up of Committees against Sexual Harassment, EPF
facility, Maternity Leave etc. were some of the demands which the Health
Secretary conceded. All retrenchments were withdrawn by the
Government and the 11-point Demand Charter was sent to the Central Government.
