• At a meeting of UFBU on February 9, it was decided that the forum will oppose the government's decision to privatise banks

• The unions noted that the decisions announced by the government are retrograde and hence, need to be opposed

New Delhi: The United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU), an umbrella organisation for nine unions representing employees in the banking sector, has issued a call for a two-day strike from March 15 against the proposed privatisation of two state-run public sector banks (PSBs). At a meeting of UFBU on February 9, it was decided that the forum will oppose the government's decision to privatise banks, said All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) general secretary CH Venkatachalam.

"The meeting discussed the various announcements made in the Budget of the Central government regarding reform measures like privatisation of IDBI Bank and two PSBs, setting up of bad bank, disinvestment in LIC, privatisation of one general insurance company, allowing FDI in insurance sector up to 74 percent, aggressive disinvestment and sale of public sector undertakings, etc," he said.

Bank privatisation decision retrograde, needs to be opposed: UFBU

At the meeting, the unions noted that the decisions announced by the government are retrograde and hence, need to be opposed, said Venkatachalam. AIBOC general secretary Soumya Datta said that after deliberations, the unions decided to give a call for a two-day bank strike on March 15 and 16 to oppose the Centre's moves. In the Union Budget presented on February 1, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced the government's plan to privatise two PSBs as part of its mega disinvestment plan. The government has already privatised IDBI Bank by selling its majority stake to LIC in 2019 and has merged 14 public sector banks in the last four years.

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UFBU member unions

The list of member unions of UFBU include All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA), All India Bank Officers' Confederation (AIBOC), National Confederation of Bank Employees (NCBE), All India Bank Officers' Association (AIBOA), Bank Employees Confederation of India (BEFI), Indian National Bank Employees Federation (INBEF), Indian National Bank Officers Congress (INBOC), National Organisation of Bank Workers (NOBW) and National Organisation of Bank Officers (NOBO).

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