Gadwal: CITU (Centre of Indian Trade Unions) has demanded the immediate release of five months' pending salaries to the workers employed in social welfare hostels across the district. On Friday, district vice president of CITU, Upper Narasimha, submitted a memorandum to district officer Saroj at the Collector’s office, urging swift action.

Speaking on the occasion, Upper Narasimha highlighted that a total of 23 workers are serving in these welfare hostels, yet they have not been paid for the past five months. He questioned how the workers are expected to sustain their families without monthly wages. He emphasized that these workers are continuously available to maintain hostel cleanliness and support the students, and it is unjust to delay their payments.

He also pointed out irregularities in crediting Provident Fund (PF) contributions, stating that the funds are not being deposited into the workers’ accounts on a monthly basis. Furthermore, he expressed concern over the lack of staff appointments proportional to the number of students in the hostels, which is putting an excessive workload on the existing workers.

Narasimha criticized the government for failing to provide "equal pay for equal work," noting that although hostel workers perform duties similar to government employees, they neither receive equal pay nor are paid regularly. He demanded that the government transfer wages directly into the workers’ accounts each month and immediately release the pending five months’ salaries. He also urged the government to deposit PF funds regularly and recruit additional staff in proportion to the number of students to reduce the burden on current workers.

He warned that if these demands are not met, the workers, with the support of CITU, would be forced to launch protests.

Workers Anand Raju, Jayakar, Gopal, Anil, David, and Upper Gopal also participated in the protest and submission of the memorandum.