Hundreds of ASHA workers, who have been staging a protest for over a month pressing various demands, on Monday intensified their agitation by laying a siege to the state's Secretariat here. A section of Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) workers has been protesting here for the last 36 days seeking post-retirement benefits and a hike in their honorarium. As they are yet to get any assurance from the authorities on their demands, the agitators today laid a siege to the Secretariat by blocking its various gates, in the heart of the city. After gathering at the protest venue, they moved towards the state's administrative hub, squatted on the road and raised slogans. Police placed barricades on the premises to block the protesters. Security was intensified in and around the Secretariat and over 800 police personnel were deployed to prevent the protesters from entering Secretariat. Police said the agitation didn't create any hurdle to the normal functioning of the Secretariat.