Beedi workers demand justice: Intense protest called against owners and government for withholding minimum wages

Beedi workers demand justice: Intense protest called against owners and government for withholding minimum wages

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangaluru, Oct 17, 2025: B.M. Bhat, President of the CITU Dakshina Kannada District Committee, has called for an intensified struggle against both the beedi owners and the government for failing to implement and pay the legally mandated minimum wages to beedi workers.

Speaking in front of the Ganesh Beedi Depot in Mangaluru during a protest organized to assert the rights of beedi workers, Bhat strongly criticized the current situation.

He condemned the policy of the beedi owners for cheating the workers by not paying the pending minimum wages from 2018 to 2024 and also for failing to pay the revised wages applicable from April 1, 2024.

He also criticized the state government, accusing it of siding with the beedi owners by setting extremely low minimum wages and not ensuring their implementation. “Calling themselves a pro-people government while failing to enforce even basic wage laws is shameful,” he said.

B. Suresh, General Secretary of the AITUC Dakshina Kannada District Beedi Workers’ Federation, also spoke at the event. He said the patience of beedi workers has its limits. “What are these beedi owners trying to achieve without even paying the minimum wages? Neither the government nor the owners have given any benefits without a fight. That’s why we must intensify our struggle,” he stated.

Vasanth Achari, President of the South Kanara Beedi Workers Federation (CITU), and Seetharam Beringe, President of the Dakshina Kannada Beedi Workers Federation (AITUC), addressed the protesters as well.

In the concluding speech, J. Balakrishna Shetty, General Secretary of the South Kanara Beedi Workers Federation (CITU), said that a large number of beedi workers in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts held an indefinite protest from October 7 to 16 demanding their legal entitlements. “Memorandums were submitted to both the beedi owners and the state government. But till now, the government has failed to ensure payment of minimum wages. Can such a government truly claim to be pro-poor?” he questioned.

The protest was led by several CITU and AITUC leaders including Jayanti B. Shetty, Jayalakshmi, Padmavati Adyarpadavu, Vanita Shivanagar, Jayalakshmi Jappinamogaru, Geetha Jalligudde, Sadashiva Das, Vasanthi, Nonayya Gowda, Lolakshi, Honnayya, Shekhar B (AITUC), and Vasudeva Kukyan.