ASHA workers’ protest throws traffic out of gear in Kolkata, police stop march to health headquarters

Kolkata: Thousands of ASHA workers blocked key thoroughfares in Kolkata’s Esplanade and Salt Lake on Wednesday, after police stopped their march to the West Bengal health department headquarters to press for various demands, including a hike in minimum monthly honorarium.

The protesters, who arrived from different districts, were initially stopped in the morning as they emerged from Sealdah and Howrah railway stations, police said.

However, around 1,000 Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA) later regrouped at Esplanade and Karunamoyee in Salt Lake and attempted to resume the march, only to be halted again by the police, they said.

Police stopped the protesters at several places, including Moulali, Sealdah’s Prachi Cinema and Bowbazar, leading to heated arguments.

In Salt Lake, where ‘Swasthya Bhawan’, the health department headquarters is located, some protesters attempted to scale barricades and enter the premises, leading to scuffle with police personnel, an officer said.

Similar scenes were witnessed at Dorina Crossing in Esplanade, where the agitators tried to break barricades and march forward, he said.

The health workers claimed they had not been paid for months, and were receiving meagre amounts despite being deployed for a range of medical emergencies and welfare programmes.

Vehicular traffic in parts of Kolkata and the northeastern satellite township of Salt Lake remained disrupted for over two hours, as the protesters sat on the roads, the officer said.

Several ASHA workers were detained from Esplanade and Salt Lake after they refused to disperse, with police terming the gathering illegal due to lack of prior permission.

DC (Central) Indira Mukherjee said the protesters were obstructing traffic on S N Banerjee Road in Esplanade. “Commuters are inconvenienced. We have to keep one flank of the road open,” she said.

Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition in West Bengal assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, described the police action as “barbaric”, and claimed that it was being carried out under the directive of the "inhuman Mamata Banerjee regime".

"They have unleashed a reign of terror and brutality against women all over the state," the senior BJP leader told reporters.

The ASHA workers, who have been on a ‘cease-work’ since December 23, came to Kolkata from different districts, claiming that Health Secretary N S Nigam had on January 21 assured them of hearing out their grievances.

State government officials, however, said no such assurance was given and no prior intimation about the protest was received.

The health workers had earlier staged protests at ‘Swasthya Bhavan’ on January 8 and January 12, seeking a meeting with senior health officials over their long-pending demand for a fixed monthly salary instead of performance-linked allowances.

Their demands include a minimum monthly honorarium of Rs 15,000 and insurance cover of Rs 5 lakh in case of death on duty.

“We get around Rs 5,500 a month for working 15-16 hours every day. How are we supposed to manage?” said Chandana Barik, an ASHA worker from Dakshin Dinajpur.

A protester also fell ill during the demonstration at ‘Swasthya Bhavan’, and was attended to by health workers and police personnel present at the site.