The Hindu Business Line : Strike hits banking operations badly

CHEQUE clearing and settlement operations were severely affected in Mumbai and many other centres on Thursday as bank employees joined the one-day nationwide strike called by trade unions.

According to the Reserve Bank of India, only 57 banks participated in clearing in the Mumbai region, against a normal of 115 banks. The number of instruments cleared on Thursday was 4,992 against the daily average of 14,500. The volume of transaction was down to Rs 1,356 crore, against over Rs 10,100 crore on a normal day.

The forex and bond markets saw very thin volumes as PSU banks stayed away from trading. In the bond market, the traded volume was Rs 235 crore. Employees of insurance companies also participated in the strike. However, nearly 50 per cent employees attended work at LIC headquarters here.

Mr A.K. Purwar, Chairman, SBI, admitted that the strike affected the bank's functioning. Around 40,000 bank employees from Mumbai participated in the strike. The nationwide strike call by trade unions affiliated to the Left parties affected proceedings to such an extent that only about one per cent of bank employees across the country reported for work today, according to Mr S. Nagarajan, Deputy General Secretary, All-India Bank Officers' Association.

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