Jammu, 11 October (H.S.): Members of the Punjab National Bank Officers’ Association (Jammu & Kashmir), affiliated with the All India Punjab National Bank Officers’ Federation (AIPNBOF) and the All India Bank Officers’ Association (AIBOA), held a protest demonstration outside the Circle Office at Bahu Plaza, here today.

The demonstration was followed by a two-day token strike led by Ashwani Pradhan, general secretary of the Association. The agitation was organized to press for the fulfillment of several long-pending and justified demands, including the implementation of a five-day banking week, a proposal that had been accepted by the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) on behalf of the Ministry of Finance in March 2024 but remains unimplemented.

The officers also demanded 100% payment of perquisite tax by the bank, revision of medical aid linked to basic pay, and restoration of residential staff repairs on declaration basis, a facility that was available before the merger with Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC).

Other key demands raised during the protest include the stoppage of delayed day-end checks, which, according to the Association, force officers to remain in branches beyond working hours; resolution of threshold limit issues; structured meeting rights for the Federation to ensure timely grievance redressal; and grant of union leave similar to what is provided to office-bearers of other associations.

The meeting was addressed by several senior leaders including A B Khajuria, Parshotam Kumar, Rubi Sharma, M H Haidary, Pankaj Sharma, Sanjeev Sharma and Ghulam Abbas.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Krishan Kumar