A two-day nationwide strike - called by a joint forum of central trade unions - is likely to affect banking, trasnportation, railways and power services on Monday and Tuesday. Bharat Bandh, says the Platform of Central Trade Unions and Sectoral Federations and Associations, aims to draw attention to criticism of the government policies, which have been defined as "anti-worker, anti-farmer and anti-national" in a statement.
Highlights
1. This is the first major protest that India is set to witness after assembly elections in five states. The BJP was able to retain four of five states - Uttar Pradesh, Manipur, Uttarakhand and Goa - while the AAP won Punjab. The BJP said it won the four states because of its pro-people and pro-development agenda.
2. About 20 crore protesters are expected to join the Bharat Bandh call. "We are expecting participation of over 20 crore formal and informal workers with mass mobilisation of workers across the country during the strike on March 28 and 29 to protest against government policies," All Indian Trade Union Congress General Secretary Amarjeet Kaur told news agency PTI
3. An advisory was issued to all the state government and electricity authorities by the ministry of power on Sunday to ensure 24*7 power supply. "All concerned may be advised to ensure close supervision of their regional network/control area and shall report to the concerned SLDC/ RLDC and NLDC in the event of any contingency... Power supply to essential services such as hospitals, defence, railways etc. should be ensured," it read. Regional and state control rooms have been put on alert.
4. The All India Bank Employees' Association on Sunday said the bank union demands the government to stop privatisation of public sector banks and strengthen them. The country's largest lender SBI and other banks have said that their services may get impacted.
5. Speedy recovery of bad loans, higher deposit rates by banks, lower service charges on customers as well as restoration of old pension scheme are some other issues that have been raised by the AIBEA. Employees of public sector banks, private banks, foreign banks, cooperative banks and regional rural banks are expected to join the strike, the association said.
6. In West Bengal, government offices have been told to remain open. "It has been decided that no casual leave or any other leave for absence either in the first half or in the second half or for the whole day shall be granted to any employee on the above-mentioned dates (March 28-March 29)," a state governmentn notification read.
7. The Mamata Banerjee government has come under criticism for not backing the protest. "The Mamata Banerjee dispensation is showing its true colours by opposing the strike which has been called to protest against the Narendra Modi regime's policies against workers, farmers and general people," Anand Sahu, Centre of Indian Trade Unions Bengal chief, told PTI. He said the Left trade unions, student bodies and supporters will be on the streets.
8. Farmers' body Samyukta Kisan Morcha has also backed the protest call.
9. The Bharat Bandh is also one of the biggest protests since farmers' agitation was called off last year. The farmers are set to hold the next wave of demonstrations in April.
10. Railways employees and staff in the defence sector are also expected to hold mass mobilisations.
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