Thu Jan 16 17:02:42 UTC 2025: ## Karnataka Hostel Workers to Stage Indefinite Protest
**Kalaburagi, January 16, 2025:** Nearly 25,000 contract workers employed in government-run hostels across Karnataka will launch an indefinite protest outside the Kalaburagi Deputy Commissioner’s office on January 20. The Karnataka Rajya Sarakari Hostel Mattu Vasati Shala Horaguttige Naukarara Sangha is demanding a significant wage increase and the regularization of their services.
According to Sangha state president Bheemshetty Yempalli, the workers, many of whom have served for over two decades, currently earn between ₹13,500 and ₹18,500 per month – less than minimum wage. They work 15-hour days, from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m., without any increment in their wages over the years. The Sangha is demanding a revised honorarium of ₹31,000 per month.
Mr. Yempalli further stated that to alleviate the heavy workload, the government should recruit at least five workers for every 100 students in the hostels and provide them with a weekly holiday. The protest aims to pressure the state government to address these long-standing concerns regarding fair wages and working conditions.
First Piper 