“Bank Bachao, Desh Bachao” Rally at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi on Nov 30: Deepak K Sharma

Dharamsala, November 25, 2021: “All India Bank Officers’ Confederation (AIBOC), the apex organisation of bank officers in the country, started Bharat Yatras from Kolkata yesterday. The Yatras also started from different parts of the country, to mobilise public opinion against bank privatization and will culminate at a ‘Bank Bachao, Desh Bachao’ Rally in New Delhi on November 30th , 2021”, said Deepak K Sharma, Sr.Vice President, All India Bank Officers’ Confederation (AIBOC), the apex organisation of bank officers in the country.
Talking to this correspondent on phone Deepak said that in this rally in New Delhi on November 30th, 2021, leaders of the farmers’ movement, trade unions, political parties and people's organisations have been invited.
He said, “While the general insurance act has already been amended in the monsoon session of parliament, it is widely anticipated that the government will be introducing amendments to the Banking Companies (Acquisition and Transfer of Undertakings) Acts, 1970 and 1980 and the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 in order to pave the way for bank privatisation as announced by the Union Finance Minister in the Union Budget 2021.”
He said that the banking sector is strongly opposing the privatisation of the banks because bank privatisation will weaken the security of bank deposits, bank privatisation will squeeze credit flow to farmers, small businesses and weaker sections, bank privatisation will exclude poor and rural customers from banking, bank privatisation will bring back bank failures, bank privatisation will weaken the banking sector and reward crony capitalism and above all  bank privatisation will shrink employment opportunities, especially for SC/ST/OBCs.
Sharma said, “We appeal to the people of India to rise up against the government’s retrograde policy of selling out our public sector enterprises, which form the backbone of our national economy. We appeal to the millions of small depositors of the PSBs, the farmers, MSMEs, Self-Help Groups and loanees from the weaker sections of society, to rise up against bank privatisation, which will harm their interests. We appeal to all civil society organisations, farmers' and workers' unions, political parties and other stakeholders of our democracy to join and support our movement in defence of the PSBs, and public sector enterprises in general. Together, we shall defeat the policies of privatisation.”