If the central government does not take steps to desist from privatization, public sector banks will go on an indefinite strike, the United Forum of Banking Union (UFBU) warned on Tuesday at the end of a nationwide two-day shutdown.
But Shirish Nalgundwar, General Secretary of the Chhattisgarh Bank Employees Association, said a final decision on the indefinite strike will be taken by the umbrella body.
He said Chhattisgarh posted a loss of Rs 5,000 crores in the banking sector due to the two-day strike as clearances, receipts, Letter of Credit and other bank functions were affected.
He said employees and officers of other public sector units like General Insurance Co and Life Insurance Corp have also scheduled a day's strike against privatization.
Nalgundwar said the Central government has not come out with a clear policy on privatization as it would lead to a massive offload of young staff who have been recruited through examinations and interviews.
The government is also not clear which public sector bank will be privatized, he added.
He said that while the Central government is pushing for digital banking, it was an impossible task due to lack of Internet connectivity in rural areas.