Banks will Remain Closed for Three Consecutive Days, Bank Union Declares Strike Again !

New Delhi: After the unions withdrew the three-day bank strike from March 11 to protest the mega-merger of PSU banks, the two unions have decided to go on bank strike on March 27. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced yesterday that the Union Cabinet has approved plans to merge 10 PSU banks into four big banks. This merger will be applicable from April 1 this year.

The unions also say that if their demands are not met, they will go on an indefinite countrywide strike from 1 April. Their demands include stopping the proposed merger of 10 PSU banks, privatization of IDBI Bank, rollback of banking reforms, recovery of bed loans and increase in interest rate on deposits.

If this strike happens, the banks will have a 3-day holiday at the end of this month. There will be a strike on 27 March, the fourth Saturday on 28 March and on 29 March, there will be a bank holiday due to Sunday.

If the bank employees strike in March, this will be the third bank strike so far this year. Earlier on January 8, during the Bharat Bandh, the bank unions had called for a one-day strike against the policies of the Modi government. After this, there was a strike on 31 January and 1 February.