Farm workers under the banner of the CPI(M)-led All India Agriculture Workers Union (AIAWU) staged a demonstration in front of the Prakasam Bhavan here on Monday to press for settlement of wages by Tobacco barn owners.
The agitators led by AIAWU district secretary P Hanumantha Rao and president K Anjaneyulu sought the intervention of the district administration for settlement of their wages for working in barns last year.
On the pretext of losses, tobacco barn owners were not clearing dues of over Rs 2.50 lakh to eight groups of farm workers, mostly Dalits, in Kandukur, they said.
The workers submitted a memorandum to Collector Kantilal Dande, who asked the police officer concerned to register criminal cases if needed to ensure justice for the farm workers.
Every year, 1.50 lakh skilled workers in Prakasam district organise themselves into groups and enter into oral agreement for carrying out various operations in tobacco barns in Prakasam, Guntur and Potti Sriramulu Nellore districts.
