Bank strike impacts clearance of instruments worth Rs 217 bn a day: union

85,000 branches shut operations on Wednesday; 3.9 million instruments remain unprocessed

Clearance of a total of 3.9 million instruments worth Rs 217 billion would have been affected on the first of the two-day all India strike declared by the nine bank employees' organisations, said C H Venkatachalam, general secretary, All India Bank Employees' Association (AIBEA). The impact is expected to be similar on Thursday, the second day of the strike.

Venkatachalam said the strike has resulted in shut down of around 85,000 branches of public sector banks and some of the older private sector banks, on Wednesday. A total of 3.9 million instruments including cheques, demand drafts and others have not been