What is the news?

• There are 32,546 dedicated ASHA workers in Assam.
• The Assam Cabinet on Wednesday fixed 60 years as the retirement age for these health service providers.
• The Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma here also decided to give monetary compensation to the ASHA workers after their retirement.
• “An ASHA worker will get Rs 2 lakh as monetary compensation whereas an ASHA supervisor will get Rs 3 lakh as compensation.
• All of them have to complete ten years of service.
• ASHA workers can avail 50 per cent of the monetary compensation if they want to take voluntary retirement.

National Rural Health Mission:

=> National Rural Health Mission was initiated on 12th April 2006.

=> The National Rural Health Mission was launched to provide effective health care to the entire rural population in the country.

=> The core strategy of the mission is to provide well trained female health activist (Accredited Social Health Activist- ASHA) in each village (1/1000 population) to fill the gap of unequal distribution of health services in rural area.

ASHA workers Key responsibilities of ASHA workers-

1. Create awareness on basic sanitation and hygienic practices, healthy living and working conditions.

2. Reproductive health of women in rural areas-

• She will counsel , women on birth preparedness, importance of safe delivery, breastfeeding and complementary feeding, immunization, contraception and prevention of common infections including reproductive tract infection/sexually transmitted infection and care of the young child.
• She will arrange escort/accompany pregnant women and children requiring treatment/admission to the nearest pre-identified health facility.

Anganwadi workers:

=> Anganwadi centre is a type of rural mother and child care centre in India.

=> They were started by the Indian government in 1975 as part of the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) program

Objective-

1. To combat child hunger and malnutrition.
2. Provides basic health care in Indian villages like oral rehydration salts, basic medicines and contraceptives..
3. Anganwadi workers guide ASHA workers in discharge of their duty.