The Hindu Business Line : Banking operations severely hit

Mr C. H. Venkatachalam, Secretary, All India Banks Employees Association and Convenor, United Forum Bank Unions (UFBU), addressing the bank employees in Chennai on Wednesday. –

Our Bureau

Mumbai, Sept. 24 Banking operations were severely affected on Wednesday as nine lakh bank employees went on a two-day nationwide strike in protest against the government policy of encouraging merger of banks.

According to a State Bank of India official, most of the bank’s branches were closed. Queues at ATMs were longer than normal, as customers withdrew money fearing that ATMs may run out of cash in the two-day period.

In Bank of India, around 99 out of the total 2,800 branches were functioning with around 85 per cent of its employees on strike, said a bank official.

The treasuries of public sector banks only carried out transactions on behalf of their clients and did not participate in the normal trading, said a treasury official with a public sector bank. As branches were not working, clients’ requests were also fewer than usual, said the official. This led to lower volumes in the foreign exchange and bond markets.

Clearing operations were also affected across the country. The number of cheques and other instruments cleared in the Mumbai region was only 1.7 lakh valued at Rs 1,122 crore as against the daily average of 7.5 lakh instruments worth 13,500 crore.

According to the unions, employees including officers of 26 public sector banks, old generation private banks and three major foreign banks participated in the strike.

The strike was called to protest the consolidation of public sector banks, the amendments to the Banking Regulation Act and to ensure faster settlement of demands such as wage revision, compassionate ground appointment and giving pension option.

“We are also demanding the rejection of the recommendation of the Raghuram Rajan Committee report regarding the privatisation of public sector banks”, said Mr C. H. Venkatachalam, Convenor, United Forum of Bank Unions.

Around 9 lakh employees—5.5 lakh employees and 3.5 lakh officers—belonging to eight unions were on strike, Mr Venkatachalam added. The strike would be continued on Thursday.

The Indian National Bank Employees Association did not participate in the strike as it differed with the other unions regarding the main agenda of the strike.

On August 18, the SBI staff went on a one-day strike to protest the merger of State Bank of Saurashtra with SBI. This was followed by another one-day strike by three bank unions on August 20, for the same reason.

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