---
title: "Visakhapatnam Protests Erupt Over Two Decades of Stagnant Wages"
url: https://projectchintan.com/article/visakhapatnam-protests-erupt-over-two-decades-of-stagnant-wages-8j2dw
publisher: Project Chintan
author: Project Chintan Newsroom
section: India
published: 2026-07-30T17:53:12.000Z
modified: 2026-07-30T20:01:18.439Z
language: en-IN
---

# Visakhapatnam Protests Erupt Over Two Decades of Stagnant Wages

Trade unions in Andhra Pradesh are demanding a hike to 26,000 rupees in monthly minimum pay. Protesters highlighted that many workers still receive as little as 6,000 rupees despite rising costs.

## Key takeaways

- CITU demands the Andhra Pradesh government implement a minimum monthly wage of 26,000 rupees for scheduled and contract industries.
- Union leaders claim wages in some sectors, like private hospitals and retail, have not been revised for nearly twenty years.
- The protest calls for the reinstatement of terminated workers from Visakha Dairy, Synergy Industries, and the local steel plant.
- Activists are pushing for the enforcement of the eight-hour workday and mandatory ESI and Provident Fund benefits for all employees.

## Widespread Stagnation in Labor Compensation

Industrial and service sector workers converged in Visakhapatnam on Thursday to protest a decades-long freeze on wage revisions. Organized by the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), the 'Chalo Collectorate' rally saw activists march from Saraswathi Park to the Collectorate. Current compensation levels in the region's scheduled industries, including shopping malls, private hospitals, and small-scale manufacturing units, range from ₹6,000 to ₹12,000 per month. CITU State president Ch. Narsing Rao noted that pay scales for many of these sectors have remained unchanged for nearly twenty years.

## Demands for Legal Protections and Regularization

The union is calling for a mandatory minimum wage of ₹26,000 for all workers, including those in contract and outsourcing roles. Beyond immediate pay increases, the demonstration focused on several critical labor rights and legal mandates: - Enforcement of the statutory eight-hour workday across all sectors. - Immediate provision of Provident Fund (PF) and Employees’ State Insurance (ESI) benefits. - The regularization of eligible contract staff in government departments, following a recent Andhra Pradesh High Court ruling. - A specific wage hike for contract personnel currently employed at Andhra University.

## Call for Reinstatement and Protection of Rights

Leaders such as K.M. Srinivas, R.K.S.V. Kumar, and M. Jaggu Naidu emphasized the need for job security alongside financial stability. The union explicitly demanded the reinstatement of workers previously terminated from Visakha Dairy, the local steel plant, and Synergy Industries. According to the CITU leadership, the failure to adjust wages in line with inflation has left the workforce unable to manage escalating living expenses, necessitating an immediate intervention by the state government.

Source: The Hindu — National

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Canonical: https://projectchintan.com/article/visakhapatnam-protests-erupt-over-two-decades-of-stagnant-wages-8j2dw
Reported from: The Hindu — National