India’s first digital grievance redressal system for gig workers launched by Karnataka

In a move to secure the rights of the growing platform-based labour force, the government of Karnataka has officially operationalised a specialised grievance redressal mechanism for platform-based gig workers. The mechanism — a first of its kind in India — has been developed by the Karnataka Platform-based Gig Workers’ Board in collaboration with the Department of e-Governance.

With the new initiative coming into force, gig workers can now officially lodge grievances, including pay, working conditions, and platform-specific disputes, through the Integrated Public Grievance Redressal System (IPGRS) portal. This creates a formal bridge between the lakhs of gig workers in the State and the technology aggregators they serve. This is believed to bring transparency and legal recourse for a workforce that has so far operated without a formal dispute resolution framework.