All the Government banks in the State, including the State capital had been closed on Wednesday. Protesting non-revision of pay, privatisation, and permission to corporate housed to open bank, hundreds of banks officers and employees strike work. The strike has affected an estimated business of about Rs 4,000 crore.
On Wednesday morning, officers and employees of all the Government banks, under the banner of United Forum of Bank Unions, assembled before the Central Bank office and demonstrated and raised slogans against the bank management and the UPA Government in support of their demands. They said that their pay revision has not been done since November 1, 2012. One-by-one, all the banks are being privatised. Compassionate appointment has been stopped. Five-day work rule is not being implemented.
Bank employees’ union leader Suresh Bani, SK Mukherjee, Sharad Velu, Dharmendra Agrawal, Shakeel, Sarkar and others said that many a time they had discussed with the bank management about their demands. Even then their demands have not been considered. In such a situation, they have been compelled to strike work. The strike is going on across the country. About 10 lakh officers and employees are on strike. Work in all banks has come to a standstill.
Bani said that about 5,000 Government bank branches in the state, including the 150 branches of Raipur. These banks do business of crores of rupees per day. Every day Rs 1,500 crore business is done in Raipur only, whereas, the business in the State is about Rs 4,000 crore. Because of the strike, crowds of people could be seen at ATMs. Retired bank officers and employees also participated in the strike.
According to them, they had been continuously demanding increase in DA and other allowances, but their demands have not been considered. In such a situation, all of them are plagued with the increasing inflation.