Banking operations hit as employees go on strike

Aurangabad, Nov 26:

Banking operations, including clearing of cheques, across the city were hit on Thursday as bank employees went on a one-day nationwide strike to protest against the anti-worker labour policies and bank privatization reforms of the central government. About 350 employees joined the strike with enthusiasm and expressed their anger against the government''s policies.

With the exception of State Bank of India, employees of other nationalized, public sector banks, old generation private sector banks, regional rural banks and foreign banks participated in the strike, affecting the banking operations. In support of the strike, women bank employees formed a human chain in front of the Bank of Maharashtra at Cidco and other employees were standing with placards in their hands. The strike crippled cheque clearance worth Rs 150 crore. The statement issued by the Maharashtra State Bank Employees Federation (MSBEF) general secretary Devidas Tuljapurkar said that the unions were opposed to the government''s policy of privatization and unwarranted merger of banks, but still the government was going ahead with these policies. Instead of focusing on recovery of corporate bad loans, the government was giving concessions to corporates and increasing service charges for common people. As the employees were on strike, this had a major impact on the bank''s operations.