ASHA workers end protest outside Kerala sectt after 266 days, to continue in districts

Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 1 (PTI) A section of ASHA workers, who had been protesting day and night outside the secretariat here for over eight months, on Saturday wrapped-up their 266-day long agitation in the heart of the state capital in order to continue it at the district-level.

After a pledge rally, inaugurated by Leader of Opposition in the state assembly V D Satheesan and attended by several UDF MLAs in the morning, the ASHA workers in the afternoon removed the makeshift protest tent, posters, banners and other paraphernalia connected with their agitation.

As they took down all the protest related items, the members of the Kerala ASHA Health Workers Association (KAHWA), which has been leading the protest, shouted slogans of victory and said that they will be back on February 10, 2026 -- the first anniversary of their agitation, if their demands are not met.

Earlier, in his inaugural speech, Satheesan said that the ASHA workers were leaving behind a mark, with their protest, that "no one can erase".

He said that it was a protest unlike anything he has seen before and that it will not end here, but spread to the various parts of the state.

"The protest which will continue at the district and panchayat-levels will be much more stronger than what it was here," the opposition leader said.

He further said the protest was an example of women's strength as they were able to show that it was the state government which had to increase their honorarium.

On Friday, while announcing the end of their agitation in front of the secretariat here, KAHWA state general secretary M A Bindu had said that they will campaign against the LDF in the upcoming local body polls.

"We will tell people not to vote for this government," she had said.

The ASHA workers had been protesting outside the secretariat since February 10 this year demanding that their honorarium be hiked to Rs 21,000 and Rs 5 lakh as post-retirement benefits. PTI HMP ROH