Gramin bank staff on fast

Tribune News Service

Mandi, March 20

The Himachal Pradesh Gramin Bank Karamchari Sangh and the Himachal Pradesh Gramin Bank Officers Organisation today launched an indefinite fast at the Seri Manch here. The protesting employees took out a protest march in support of their long pending demands.

Anurag Joshi, president of the officers’s organisation, Shyam Singh, president of the karamchari sangh, Bidhi Chand and Sohnu sat on an indefinite fast.

MP Soni, general secretary of the organisation, said their main demands included regularisation of part-time sweepers working in 188 branches of the bank for the last 15 to 25 years against vacant posts of office attendant, cash allowance, petrol reimbursement, computer increment, waiver of house-building loan on the death of employee, leased house accommodation and HRA.

He said sweepers were getting only Rs 2,500 per month and the bank management had decided to pay the wages in cash and not to credit the amount in their bank accounts.

He said the bank was working in the state, but interviews for various posts were conducted in Haryana. He demanded that the interviews should be conducted at the bank headquarters.

“The management is also not following the transfer policy of the bank,” he said.

He said they would hold a demonstration in front of the Punjab National Bank, the main sponsor bank, headquarters in Delhi, on March 25, if their demands were not accepted.