Bhopal: The banking transactions of more than Rs 5 lakh crore were affected in MP due to the strike of bank employees on Wednesday. The strike which continues till Thursday may affect transactions of similar amount. Around 5000 employees took out a rally in the MP Nagar and raised the slogans in favour of their demands and to voice their against the government.
While addressing a public gathering the United Forum of Bank Unions coordinator VK Sharma said “It’s ironic to say that although we have earned a profit of Rs 1.59 lakh crore in 2016-17 still we are offered only two percent increment in our the salary”.
He alleged, “On one hand the government is putting thousands of crore of rupees of the industrial and private companies into the NPA accounts and on other the banks are not giving adequate increments in the salaries”. The employees claim that they are working to achieve the government run schemes day and night, they had also put their effort to resolve the demonetisation and they are working under immense pressure, but the government and the banks are not paying attention to their demands.
Notably, on May 28 the officials of United Forum of Bank Unions met the chief labour commissioner in New Delhi, in vain. Finally the Forum called the two day strike of May 30 and 31 to oppose only two percent hike in their salary of all the nationalized, private and foreign banks. The strike affected the more than 9000 ATMs in the state. In Bhopal itself around 1000 ATMs went out of cash. It is estimated that till Friday noon almost 40 percent ATMs will run out of cash.