Vijayawada: Bank employees to strike work on March 15, 16

Vijayawada: United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU), an association of bank employees' unions, has demanded the Central government to desist from the proposals of privatisation of three nationalised banks--Bank of Maharashtra, Bank of India and Central Bank of India.

The UFBU leaders addressing media conference at the Film chamber hall in Gandhi Nagar on Thursday said that the Central government in the recently presented budget proposed to privatise three nationalised banks.

The UFBU leaders said that they will go on strike on March 15 and 16 in the country protesting the policies of the Centre on the banking sector.

All India Bank Officers Confederation (AIBOC) State general secretary Y Satyanarayana, National Confederation of Bank Employees (NCBE) central committee member V Bhavani Prasad, Bank Employees Federation of India (BEFI) State general secretary R Ajay Kumar and others addressing media conference said that the decisions taken by the Union government are detrimental to the banks and crores of customers in the country.

They said that the Central government is planning to merge 12 banks and form only four banks in the country.

They said that nine important bank unions have formed United Forum of Bank Unions and fighting to protect the nationalised banks.

They said the bank deposits of Rs.110 lakh crore should be useful to the weaker sections, needs of the country and for the strengthening of Indian economy but the deposits should not go into the hands of corporate groups.

They said that the bank unions called for the nation-wide strike on March 15 and 16 opposing the Union government policies on the banking sector particularly the nationalised banks.

They said that the bank employees under the auspices of UFBU would stage protests near the State Bank of India zonal office on March 15 and near the Union Bank of India circle office near Amma hotel on March 16 and appealed to the bank employees to participate in the protests and nation-wide strike.