Strike in SBI associate banks on Tuesday

CH Venkatachalam said the government was trying to divert the people's attention from the mounting bad loans in the banking sector

Around 45,000 employees in the five associate banks of the State Bank of India (SBI) will strike work on Tuesday, said a leader of the All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA).

"Only the workmen (clerical and messenger cadre) will be on strike. However, work in the branches will be affected," CH Venkatachalam, the AIBEA General Secretary, told IANS.

He said the employees of SBI would not be on strike.

The union is opposed to the government's decision to merge State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur (SBBJ), State Bank of Travancore (SBT), State Bank of Patiala (SBP), State Bank of Mysore (SBM) and State Bank of Hyderabad (SBH) with the SBI.

The government has also decided to merge the Bharatiya Mahila Bank with SBI.

He said the government was trying to divert the people's attention from the mounting bad loans in the banking sector by the merger move.