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Pratibha Baburao Desai

Shivaji University, India

Title: Life Of Community Health Workers During Pandemic: With Spceial Reference To Ashas Workers

Abstract

Government of India launched National Rural Health Mission in 2005 to establish credible public health services in rural areas and proposed a new band of community based functionaries, named Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) who served in villages and popularly known as ASHAs. India including all over World is facing the pandemic COVID-19 and virus spreading throughout the World and changes entire social system. In India COVID-19 warriors doctors, nurses, health care takers and ASHAs are fighting the day and night against this pandemic. In rural India ASHAs are frontline workers in the fight against COVID-19 in the national capital. In this pandemic situation they are taking personal risk and working long hours to prevent COVID-19. Due to their contribution covid-19 is in control in rural areas rather than urban areas. But in many parts of   India they are harassed and beaten when they are advising people to care and they have also not covered by any insurance scheme for their risky job. It is very important to understand their contribution in controlling pandemic as frontline workers. Hence the present research paper made an attempt to understand their life and problems they are facing in this time of  pandemic. 

Methodology: The objectives of the study are to to understand their life, known their life during  COVID- and to understand the problems they face at working place. This study was carried in Kolhapur district of Western Maharashtra. Out of twelve talukas four talukas, which had more COVID patients during first and second waves are selected for the study. There are total 1,229 ASHAs are working in four talukas and out of total 40% of ASHAs workers are selected for present study. 

Findings: ASHAs are working hard log hours to get over this pandemic in rural areas with their routine work of maternal and child health care services. While working, they face many problems and they are scolded, harassed and beaten and non-accepted by community 

Conclusion: Despite of their contribution to control the pandemic, they are suffering number of problems such over loaded burden of work, irregular payment, meager payment etc and they also face the behavioral problems of villagers.

Biography

Dr. Pratibha. B. Desai, M.A. (Sociology), UGC-NET (Sociology), SET (Sociology) and Ph.D.(Sociology) is working as Associate Professor in Department of Sociology, Shivaji University, Kolhapur. (Maharashtra State, India). Specializations of author are Gender and Society, Sociology of Development, Health, Population and Rural Sociology. She has 15 yrs of teaching and research experience. She has guided PG research projects. She has recognisation to guide for doctoral students of Sociology of Shivaji University, Kolhapur and three research students are awarded and four are working for doctoral thesis. She has completed twelve research projects of funding agencies such as UGC, ICSSR and State Women Commission more than 60 and presented more than 55 papers at various national and international workshops, seminars and conferences and published 37 research papers/articles in journals, e-journals, proceedings and books of repute with ISBN and ISSN number at national and international level. She also published four books with ISBN number.