India Coronavirus Dispatch: 600,000 frontline health workers go on strike

Why NREGS is no longer popular in Odisha's Ganjam, Delhi's Covid beds turn vacant, artisans face brunt of a shrinking economy--news on how India is dealing with the pandemic

From the frontline: The country relies heavily on a group known as Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA), an all-female group that has helped immensely in the fight against polio and tuberculosis. ASHA workers are the crucial link between government health policy and the people. During the pandemic, they’ve been playing the role of contact tracers. However, India’s army of health workers has been grossly underpaid and harassed. According to testimonies, they are paid Rs 2,000 a month and are not given appropriate protective gear. Some have succumbed to the virus. Now, 600,000 of the one-million strong group have called a