NHM contract workers in Karnataka have begun a padayatra from Tumakuru’s Siddaganga Math to Nelamangala, demanding regularisation of community health officers’ services and changes to recruitment, transfer and pay rules. The march has been organised by the State Community Health NHM Contract Employees’ Association.
The workers are opposing the decision to prescribe a Bachelor of Science in Nursing qualification for primary health officer and health inspector officer posts. Protesters said the requirement could affect the future of community health officers who are already serving under the National Health Mission.
Association general secretary C.B. Naik said the organisation had earlier submitted a representation seeking withdrawal of the BSc Nursing qualification requirement. However, although a final notification was issued on September 15, the association had not received clear information on how its objections were considered, he said.
The demand is therefore not limited to a change in the qualification rule. The association has sought a comprehensive consideration of all objections submitted by it, along with clear reasons for the government’s decision. The workers have said that the process should explain how the existing workforce will be treated after the new qualification requirement is implemented.
The association has also demanded transparent and fair inter-district transfer rules for community health officers. It said transfer procedures should account for the service conditions of workers posted across districts and should not leave employees without a clear framework for seeking or receiving transfers.
Pay revision is another central demand. According to Naik, the responsibilities and duties performed by community health officers should be taken into account while revising their remuneration. The demand links the question of compensation to the role the officers perform within the public health system, rather than treating their work only as a contractual employment issue.
The planned route will take the workers from Siddaganga Math in Tumakuru to Nelamangala. From Nelamangala, the march is scheduled to proceed towards Bengaluru on Tuesday morning and reach Freedom Park, where the association has planned a gathering.
The protest brings together three issues affecting the state’s NHM contract workforce: the continuation of existing employees under revised qualification rules, the absence of clearly communicated procedures for considering objections, and the terms under which community health officers are transferred and paid. The association’s demands also place the government’s notification process under scrutiny, particularly the need to communicate how representations are assessed before a final order is issued.
The next stated milestone is the workers’ arrival at Freedom Park and the public meeting planned there. The association has said it will press for a response on the qualification notification, transfer rules, service regularisation and pay revision.
