A two-day Bharat Bandh called by a joint forum of central trade unions against the government’s alleged wrong policies began today disrupting banking services and public transport in some parts of the country.
The bank unions are participating in the strike to protest against the government’s plan to privatize public sector banks, as well as the Banking Laws Amendment Bill 2021.
Apart from banks, workers from various other sectors such as steel, oil, telecom, coal, postal, income tax, copper, and insurance are expected to participate in the strike.
The unions in railways and defence sector are expected to make mass mobilization in support of strike at several hundreds of spots.
Roadways, transport workers and electricity workers have decided to join the strike.
The Power Ministry today advised all the state-run utilities and other agencies to be on high alert and ensure round-the-clock electricity supply and stability of the national grid.
Power supply to those engaged in essential services such as hospitals, defence, and railways must be ensured, the ministry’s advisory said and suggested setting up of a 24×7 control room for information dissemination and handling any kind of contingency.
A number of banks, including the State Bank of India, have issued a statement informing customers that banking services may be impacted on Monday and Tuesday.