Nationwide strike: SBI operations stalled in Tripura

Agartala, Apr 3 (UNI) Banking operations in all the 33 branches of State Bank of India in Tripura virtually collapsed with the employees joining the nation-wide indefinite strike from today in support of their charter of demands.

A spokesman of the Bank's joint movement committee said the charter of demands included review of the present pension system and linking DA with rise in the prices of essentials.

Describing the strike as 'total', the spokesman claimed that all the 800 employees of the Bank had joined the nationwide strike.

All the 33 branches of the Bank in the state were kept open yesterday to facilitate the disbursement of salaries of the Government employees and other companies here.

The employees and officers of the SBI have already sent memoranda to the Prime Minister and the Finance Minister for redressal of their grievances and the last minutes efforts to avoid the strike had failed to produce any result, the spokesman said.

Regretting the harrasment of the common people because of the strike, he said the Bank employees had no alternative but to resort to the strike as the government had refused to redress their grievances.

The SBI employees have been demanding 50 per cent of the gross salary as pension instead of Rs 4,500 to Rs 5000 being given currently.

In 1969 the SBI employees went on strike for 21 days to press for their charter of demands.

UNI RB SJC RD 1208