Bank strike plays havoc

​Hyderabad/Amaravati: For bank account holders, it was a double whammy. The ATMs had gone dry and for two days beginning on Wednesday the banks have downed shutters in AP and Telangana as part of nationwide strike in protest against the Indian Banks Association’s offer of a mere two per cent hike in salaries.    

The account holders were caught off-guards when they saw operations at banks having come to a standstill and the employees out on the roads raising slogans for their benefit, not bothering about the suffering they are causing to their customers.

Of late, people are going to the banks for withdrawal of cash since ATMs had become duds and even this facility was not available for them. They now would have to wait till Friday for the banks to open and be “generous” to the customers in dispensing cash to them.

A businessman Ravi Kiran who went to State Bank of India Koti branch was disappointed when he saw the bank being closed. “I was caught unawares. I could not draw money from ATM as it had gone dry. Where do I get money now?”, he asks and points out that his business would be hit hard if he does not have cash on hand”. 

An account holder Sunita, who was at Central Bank of India, Koti, too was not expecting the banks to remain closed for two days: “It is very difficult for me without cash in hand. With banks on strike and ATM's having no money stashed in them, it is getting very difficult for me. I need money very badly now. Where would I get it?” she asks.  

A homemaker Anuradha who was looking forlorn at Punjab National Bank says: “We are having problem with cash since the days of demonetisation. The situation has not improved ever since. This is creating a lot of problems to me. I need money to pay rent for my house, pay my housemaid and grocer. They will not wait,” she said.

In AP, people suffered with about 5,000 bank branches in all cities and towns having been closed. Last two days of the month are very important for many customers, traders and firms.  Marketing executive of a private company M Raghuram said: "The bank strike is creating a lot of problems to me. I could not pay dues to my distributor."

Many retailers have to pay money to the distributors, wholesalers and companies at the end of the month to get the stock next month. Due to various factors, the wholesalers and distributors collect money from the retailers at the end of the month. 

But, due to the closure of banks, the traders were unable to pay the dues to the companies, distributors on Wednesday. Property buyers and sellers too suffered due to the banks strike. 

The buyers have to pay challans in the banks. In other cases, some buyers give cheques. Due to closure of banks, thousands of cheques were not sent for collection on Wednesday.

At Hyderabad, secretary of All India Bank Employees Association Ram Babu said that from November 2017 bank employees are to get 11th bipartite wage revision but there is no proper offer from the Indian Banks Association. 

He said the Indian Banks Association will also consult the Union government, but the government is not giving them proper guidance.

“IBA revised wages by only 2 per cent on May 5, 2018 for the 10 lakh bank employees. We demand respectable wage increase because the wage revision come once in five years. 

If the government comes forward to settle the problem, we are ready to call off the strike if they come up with a respectable offer to the bank employees. 

During the demonetisation, bank employees have worked for 50 days without taking leaves but there is no appreciation from the government”, Ram Babu said.