ASHA workers to be paid more

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, July 20

The Haryana Government on Friday made substantial increase in the comprehensive incentive package for ASHA workers, which would result in an additional liability of Rs104 crore on the Budget.

The earlier liability of Rs57 crore would increase to Rs161 crore. Health Minister Anil Vij said guidelines related to ASHA incentives had been issued to all Civil Surgeons.

He said all ASHA workers should resume their duties with immediate effect so that they could provide health services to the general public, especially children and pregnant women.

The monthly fixed honorarium was increased from Rs1,000 to Rs4,000. The revised provision for facilitating institutional delivery would be Rs300 per case compared to existing provision of Rs200 a case.

Vij said the government had enhanced incentive rates for five major ASHA workers’ activities. In case of Institutional delivery under Janani Suraksha Yojana, the incentive was increased from Rs300 to Rs400 for rural areas and from Rs200 to Rs300 for urban areas.

The incentive for routine immunisation of children was increased from Rs150 to Rs250, for antenatal check-up of pregnant women from Rs250 to Rs350, for home-based postnatal care of mother and newborn from Rs250 to Rs350 and for promoting spacing between births from Rs500 to Rs550.