STRATEGIC PARTNERS
April 17, 2002
CHANDIGARH, India -- Technology came to the rescue of the common man during a one-day bankers' strike in India, according to a report in the Financial Times. Although the April 17 strike brought transactions at the country's government-owned bank branches to a standstill, people lined up to use ATMs instead.
A customer of State Bank of India told the Times, ''I had taken the ATM card but always took it to be a superfluous thing. It is for the first time that I am making use of the facility.''
More than 6,000 employees of public sector banks and insurance companies in the city observed the strike, protesting the privatization of banks and a ban on new recruitments, which is now in its seventh year, among other issues.
The strike was coordinated by the United Front for Bank Unions (UFBU), supported by major bank employee unions, including the All India Bank Officers Confederation (AIBOC), Indian National Bank Officers Confederation (INBOC), National Conference of Bank Employees (NCOBE) and All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA).
Private sector banks, including HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank, remained open and used the strike as a selling point about the benefits of having an account with their branches.
