Bank strike from today, operations to take a hit

Eastern Mirror Desk
Dimapur, March 14 (EMN): Banking services in the country could be affected for two days — March 15 and 16 — amid a nationwide strike of bank unions against the proposed privatisation of two state-owned lenders.

The United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU), an umbrella body of nine unions, has claimed that about 10 lakh bank employees and officers of the banks will participate in the strike.

Services such as deposits and withdrawal at branches, cheque clearance and loan approvals could be affected due to the strike.

UFBU Nagaland state will also take part in the nationwide strike from 9:30 am on March 15 and 16 at Supermarket complex near SBI regional business office in Dimapur; at SBI regional business office in Mokokchung; and at SBI main branch near DC office in Kohima.

Private banks like HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Axis Bank and IndusInd Bank, would be functioning normally, but these account for only one-third of banking services in the country.

Many public sector lenders, including the country’s largest bank State Bank of India (SBI), had already informed their customers about the impact of the strike on their functioning of branches and offices. “We inform that, we have been advised by lndian Banks Association (IBA) that United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) which comprises nine major unions, viz. All lndia Bank Employees’ Association AIBEA, All India Bank Officers’ Confederation AIBOC, National Confederation of Bank Employees NCBE, All lndia Bank Officers’ Association AIBOA, Bank Employees Federation of India BEFI, Indian National Bank Employees Federation INBEF, Indian National Bank Officers’ Congress INBOC, National Organisation of Bank Workers NOBW & National Organisation of Bank Officers NOBO, has given a call for all lndia strike by bank employees on March 15 and 16, 2021. While Bank has made all arrangements to ensure normal functioning in its branches and offices, it is likely that work in our Bank may be impacted by the strike,” SBI had said
in a filing to the stock exchanges earlier this week.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, presenting the Union Budget last month, had announced the privatisation of two public sector banks as part of the government’s disinvestment plan.

The government has already privatised IDBI Bank by selling its majority stake in the lender to LIC in 2019 and has merged 14 public sector banks in the last four years.