No single payment system for Asha workers

BENGALURU: Even as Asha workers are demanding single payment system, the health department says that the honorarium given by the State Government and incentives provided under National Health Mission (NHM) cannot be merged. It says payment of Rs 5,000 honorarium to Asha workers by the State Government is done through Aadhar-based direct benefit transfer to their bank accounts, whereas the incentives under NHM are performance-based, distributed through public finance system. 

State general secretary of Karnataka Rajya Samyuktha Asha Karyakarthara Sangha, D Nagalakshmi alleged that there is a three-month delay in payment of honorariums and also undue delay in uploading details of their services by designated data entry operators on Reproductive and Child Health (RCH) portal, which is leading to further delay in payment of incentives to 50 per cent of Asha workers in the State. The State government should merge their honorarium and incentives and give one-time monthly salary. Wages should be fixed to meet the present living standards, she demanded.

Health department sources claim there are 2,531 designated data entry operators in 2,351 primary health centres. So the delay in payment due to delayed entry of data is barely one per cent. At least 85 per cent of the funds meant for Asha workers were spent in 2021-22. Data for only nine RCH activities are uploaded on RCH portal. 

Delayed registration of beneficiaries and incomplete data provided by Asha workers are leading to non-payment of incentives or delay in the payment of incentives, they claim. Asha workers get incentives up to Rs 4,485 for 26 basic line activities including nine RCH activities.

They get up to Rs 2,000 incentive for eight routine recurring basic line activities and Rs 7,500 for TB treatment supporter honorarium. They can also get team-based incentive of Rs 1,000 under extended package services which include health and wellness centre activities. There is one-month delay in payment, they admitted.