India, April 14 -- Protests by factory workers demanding wage hike in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, on Monday spread to adjoining States and turned violent with incidents of vandalism, stone pelting and arson being reported.

According to officials, workers from several factories had gathered to press for salary hikes and improved working conditions, but the demonstration spiraled into violence.

A worker, Akshay, said companies in Gurugram have started paying their workers INR 20,000 a month. "We are getting INR 10,000 and sometimes INR 1,000 gets deducted," he said.

Protests were reported from the Phase-2 and Sector 60 areas of Noida and Sector 38 of Faridabad, leading to road blocks and a long jam on the highways, including the Delhi-Meerut E...