New Delhi, 14 April (H.S.):

Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi has extended support to the agitating workers in Noida over their demands.

He asserted that workers form the backbone of the nation, yet the government perceives them as a burden. The Congress party stands firmly with the workers.

Rahul Gandhi wrote on 'X' that what transpired on Noida's streets on Monday constituted the final desperate cry of this country's workers—every utterance ignored, every plea exhausted through ceaseless supplication.

Of the ₹12,000 monthly wage earned by a Noida worker, ₹4,000-7,000 dissipates in rent. An annual salary increment of ₹300 proves futile against the landlord's ₹500 rent hike.

Inflation is throttling the workers' lives and plunging them into debt.

He remarked that gas prices escalate relentlessly, while wages stagnate. Workers are compelled to purchase cylinders costing up to ₹5,000 at times.

This transcends Noida alone; fuel prices surge worldwide, supply chains fracture, yet the burden evades industrialists and lands squarely upon daily-wage laborers.

Rahul Gandhi accused the government of unilaterally implementing four Labour Codes since November 2025 without consultation, extending work hours to 12.

The plea of a worker who toils standing 12 hours daily, incurring debt for children's school fees, is hardly unjust. The Noida worker demands ₹20,000 salary—a rightful entitlement.

Workers from several Noida factories descended onto the streets on Monday and Tuesday to press their demands. The initially peaceful protests escalated into violence, with demonstrators setting multiple vehicles ablaze and vandalizing factories. Police detained several protesters.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar