Strike cripples PSB services in Punjab, Haryana & Chandigarh

Banking services in Punjab, Haryana and UT Chandigarh were affected today as public sector bank employees went on a day-long strike to protest the government's proposed consolidation move, besides raising other demands.
While customers could not get their cheques cleared, services like cash withdrawal, cash and cheque deposits were also hit.
Several harried customers faced inconvenience as they found many branches of public sector banks (PSBs) closed by the protesting employees.
The industrial sector including MSME and large enterprises of Punjab and Haryana were the worst hit due to the strike.
However, major private sector banks continued to function.
The protesting employees held rallies and demonstrations at several places including Ludhiana to press for their demands.

While addressing bank employees in Ludhiana, Punjab Bank Employees Federation Secretary Naresh Gaur said they did not want customers to face any kind of inconvenience.

"But we are left with no option except to go on strike," he said.
He said bank officials' major demands include stopping mergers, consolidation and privatisation of banks, criminal action against wilful defaulters of bank loans, implement recommendations of Parliamentary Committee on recovery of NPAs, abolish bank board bureau, among others.
In Phagwara, banks officials raised slogans against Central government and its "anti-people" banking policies.
Punjab Bank Employees Federation Phagwara Chairman V K Verma and Secretary Narinder Singh raised slogans against government's "double standard" on non-performing asset(NPA) policy.

Condemning hike in banking service charges, they alleged that it had put unnecessary burden on common man and should be rolled back.