Vultures Of War: ‘There's No Work, How Do We Afford LPG?’ Ask Workers At Noida’s Labour Market Hub

Kishan Pal arrived at the Khora Colony labour market in Noida at 6:45 am on Tuesday, a routine he has followed for years. Like hundreds of others, he stood waiting to be hired for a day’s work. He would wait until noon; if no work came, he would return home empty-handed.

His daughter was hospitalised this week and needed glucose injections. A daily wage labourer, nearly all his earnings have gone into her treatment. He says he is struggling to understand why everything has suddenly become so expensive, with the geopolitical factors and war in West Asia beyond his comprehension.

He has not found work for three days. There is no money to treat his wife’s wound, a blister caused by cooking over firewood. LPG has become a distant dream for the family. “I am lucky that my landlord lets us cook inside the room,” he says, as plumes of smoke have stained the walls with soot.

Noida’s informal hiring hub was busier than usual on Tuesday morning. Alongside Pal, workers stood with their tools, paint brushes, measuring tapes, gauging trowels and wooden floats, like superheroes clutching their weapons on the frontline.

Daily-wage labourers say they are struggling to find work. The wages offered have dropped, while the gaps between jobs have widened, further worsened by the LPG crisis. With no facility to cook at home, they are forced to eat from the market, where prices have risen. “Even the e-rickshaws are charging ₹10 extra to drop us here, why is this happening?” Raj Kumar questioned.

Hundreds gathered in a loose sprawl. They stood beside open stretches where refuse floated in a nearby drain, stirred by SUVs that honked for space as people in cars entered the factory against whose wall the labourers leaned.

As soon as a sub-contractor arrived, voices rose in a chorus. They called out, bargaining for a day’s wage. A handful was chosen, at least assured of work for the day. But not all of them are so lucky. 

The situation remains dire for all, skilled and unskilled workers, young and old. Women, though present, were far fewer than the men who crowded the site.

Last month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged people not to panic or pay attention to rumours, stressing the importance of sharing only verified information regarding the crisis in West Asia. As India’s LPG crisis remains, he added that during the Covid-19 pandemic, 140 crore Indians had demonstrated the nation’s maturity, and expressed confidence that the country would overcome every challenge successfully.

The effects of the war in West Asia have trickled down to Uttar Pradesh’s Noida, much like in hundreds of other labour markets across the Delhi-NCR region. Arvind Kumar, originally from Etah, says the struggles never seem to end. “First it was demonetisation, then it was coronavirus, now it is the shortage of gas, is the government trying to kill the poor?” he said, adding that although he is not against the government, the authorities should do something to help.

“There is so much unregulated black-market selling of LPG cylinders, why is no action being taken against it?” Siraj asked, suggesting that the government could at least provide daily wage labourers with some subsidy. 

“On the contrary, we have to stand in queues for hours to get gas refilled at Rs 400 per kg as opposed to Rs 80, losing out on a day’s possible income,” said Siraj, who moved from Mainpuri to Delhi a year ago and is the sole breadwinner for his family of four.

As of April 5, according to the Ministry of Labour and Employment, construction workers form the second-largest group of registered workers in Delhi, at 4,69,027; just behind miscellaneous workers, who number 4,69,745. The Delhi Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board website stated that the total number of active members currently stands at 2,60,220.

“Why do they keep asking us to make PAN cards, e-Shram cards, Aadhaar cards, with all the same details, when not a single benefit is granted?”asks Saleem, 36, who moved to Delhi from Badaun two decades ago. Tuesday marked the 13th day since he had not found work.

Saleem said he has been feeding his 14-year-old daughter and 12-year-old son glucose biscuits with water, his expression heavy with remorse. “The least they can do is give us gas cylinders if they cannot give us work,” he added.

Babita, from Bihar, used to work as a cook in a bungalow before joining the labour force two months ago. She said political parties sweet-talk labour voters during elections but are nowhere to be seen now. “I missed days of work, travelled back to Bihar to vote for the person who is on the throne today, why is he not helping me?” she questioned.

Along with the loss of work, wages have also shrunk. “The contractors shamelessly bargain with us and try to hire us for Rs 500. A cylinder costs up to Rs 450. How are we supposed to survive? The situation is pushing us towards suicide,” said Kumar, who has worked as a daily-wage labourer for 18 years. 

The Delhi government’s April 2025 advisory revised the minimum wage for unskilled labour to Rs 710, far above what is being offered on the ground.

Kumar added that the circumstances are worse than during the pandemic, when they at least had access to cooking food.

Struggling to afford daily expenses, workers said that at least 20 per cent of the labour force at Noida’s market has returned to their native places in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. 

Mala Devi, a mother of three, with her eldest aged 12, is set to leave for Bihar on Thursday. “I don’t know if I will come back,” she said.

Devi used to work in a factory until two years ago. One evening, her children, hungry, tried to cook and one of them suffered facial burns in the process. Devi resigned immediately and joined the informal labour market, hoping that if she finished work by 5:00 pm, she could return home in time to cook for her children. Now it has been days since she has found work. “Will this crisis end anytime soon?” she questioned, with hope.

Speaking of the war in West Asia and the closure of Strait of Hormuz, Modi said that the situation has affected the “whole world's” energy supply chain. “We believe in the ideology of India First. In any situation, we have seen how our government always puts the interests of Indians above everything,” he said.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on April 6 alleged that the Modi government has dealt with the LPG gas crisis just like it handled the COVID-19 pandemic. “The labourer returning home at night doesn't even have money to light the stove. The result - abandon the city, flee to the village,” he said on X. 

He added that when arrogance becomes policy - the economy crumbles, workers migrate, industries are ruined, and the country is pushed back by decades.

Rajesh Singh, a mason from Gorakhpur, said that government promises are made only for the cameras. He had seen reports suggesting that the crisis in West Asia might ease in three months, but he remains sceptical. He added that contractors are now hiring labourers by the hour, and with inflation rising sharply, it is becoming impossible for him to survive.

“Where are the benefits? Has the government forgotten that we exist? We have nothing to do with the war, so why are we suffering?” he asked, adding that the LPG crisis too is more pronounced for them. 

According to him, suppliers at LPG centres prioritise people they know. “Do rich people wait in line? They make one call and the cylinder is delivered to their homes,” Singh said, as others around him nodded in agreement.