Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi made a strong appeal in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, December 16, 2025, urging the central government to significantly improve the financial condition of frontline women health workers. During the Winter Session's Zero Hour, she focused on the plight of Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA) and Anganwadi workers, describing them as overburdened and underpaid despite their critical role in public service delivery.
Core Demands: Doubling Pay and Filling Vacancies
Sonia Gandhi's primary demand was for the Union government to double its contribution to the compensation of these workers. She detailed the current meagre honorariums, pointing out that Anganwadi workers receive a base of just Rs 4,500 per month, while helpers get Rs 2,250. She emphasized that ASHA workers, who undertake vital tasks like immunization, maternal health, and family welfare, are still classified as volunteers with low pay and minimal social security.
Beyond the pay issue, Gandhi highlighted a severe staffing crisis. She revealed there are nearly 3 lakh vacancies in the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme. This centrally sponsored programme is crucial for providing nutrition, immunisation, and health check-ups to children, pregnant women, and nursing mothers through Anganwadi centres. "These gaps leave lakhs and lakhs of children and mothers without essential services," she stated in her Rajya Sabha address.
Structural Issues and Long-Term Solutions
The Congress leader also pointed to systemic problems exacerbating the situation. She noted that even filled posts often fall short of required population norms because the allocations are based on outdated census figures from 2011. To build a more robust system, Sonia Gandhi proposed concrete steps:
- Appointing one additional ASHA worker in every village with a population exceeding 2,500.
- Doubling the number of Anganwadi workers to manage the workload effectively.
- Ensuring all workers receive their payments on time without delays.
She framed her appeal not just as a welfare measure but as a strategic investment. "I wish to emphasise that strengthening, expanding, and supporting this workforce is an investment in India’s future," Gandhi asserted. Her speech underscored the contradiction between these initiatives being pathways to women's empowerment and the reality of the workers' distress.
The Broader Impact on Public Health
The call to action extends beyond immediate remuneration. By addressing the pay disparity and massive vacancies, the government can potentially revitalise the ICDS and National Health Mission frameworks. A supported and adequately staffed frontline workforce is essential for improving national indicators in child health, maternal mortality, and immunization coverage. Sonia Gandhi's intervention in Parliament brings renewed political focus to a long-standing grievance of millions of women who form the backbone of India's rural public health and nutrition infrastructure.
