MARDAN, April 9: Brick kiln workers have demanded raise in their wages in proportion to increase in prices of essential commodities. Provincial Brick Kiln Labour Union vice-president Haji Mohammad Inam said the kiln owners paid Rs150 to labourers for making 1,000 bricks.

Talking to this correspondent here on Saturday, Haji Inam deplored the attitude of kiln owners and said workers could not even meet their daily expenses with the meagre wage as the prices of edibles had registered a sharp increase in recent months.

He said kiln workers could hardly imagine having tap water, electricity or gas facility in their houses. Their children, he added, were unable to get education or health care facilities. He urged the authorities to increase the salary of kiln workers.