Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: The nationwide strike called by the Joint Action Committee of Workers and Employees' Unions on Thursday for various demands hit banks and industrial estates in the city.
Hundreds of activists of the Centre of Indian Trade union (CITU) and employee unions in nationalised banks in the city came together and staged a strong protest at Kranti Chowk.
Workers, employees and bankers participated and publicly protested against the central government's anti-worker, employee and public banking policy.
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Works of nationalised banks disrupted
The protest was supported by employee unions in other nationalised banks except SBI. The work of the Bank of Maharashtra, Bank of India, and Punjab National Bank, was disrupted due to this. Office bearers of the bank employees' union participated in the sit-in protest organised at Kranti Chowk.
As all the employees of the above-mentioned banks went on strike, work could not be carried out in all branches in the district. Some employees of IDBI Bank were on strike.
Unions like AIBEA, BEFI, AIBOA actively participated in the movement. Employee unions of Bank of Baroda and Maharashtra Gramin Bank, along with other banks, had supported the movement. However, since the employees were at work, the work here was going on smoothly.
Bankers, including leaders Devidas Tuljapurkar, Rajendra Deole, Pranav Kushike, Sachin Adhane, Ashish Jadhav, Secretary Deshpande, and Sheela Kharat, participated in the agitation at Kranti Chowk.
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What were demands of bankers?
Strengthen public sector banks and insurance companies, recruit adequately, stop outsourcing and contractual system, cancel NPS and reintroduce OPS, withdraw fixed term employment scheme, take strict measures to recover outstanding dues from corporate loan defaulters, and reduce bank service charges for ordinary customers.
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This nationwide strike had a mixed impact on companies. Workers of the largest Bajaj Auto company here were at work. Along with this, companies supplying goods to Bajaj were also operating.
However, some workers from MIDC had participated in the strike, but there was no significant impact on the daily operations of the companies.