Bank holidays to leave common man in lurch

Few days back it was bank strike and now the holidays are going to hit the banking operations and affect the daily life of people to a large extent. During the two day strike the banking operations in all the branches of public sector banks including State Bank of India and its associates had come to stand still and now in this month of October the festival season has started meaning a number of holidays is going to leave the common man in lurch.

Now banks will be closed for public on September 30 on account of half-yearly closing; then in some states banks will be closed on Wednesday or Friday for Eid. After this the banks will be closed for Gandhi Jayanti on October 2. Then banks will open for one day in between and again they will get in the weekend mood.

However bank branches in the financial capital, will remain open for business on Friday. The spokesperson of ICICI Bank informed that the bank will remain open on Friday although its Goa branches will remain closed because of the festival of Eid. However He added in case the Maharashtra Government declared a holiday on Friday, banks will remain closed in Mumbai also. While a Canara Bank spokesperson said that banks will be closed on October 2 but will remain open on Friday.

A member of the All India Association of Industries (AIAI) said, “Industry will also suffer if banks remained closed for so many days. Cheques and other transactions will be delayed. This is not in the interest of a growing economy like India’s”.