Striking members of a bank union stage a dharna in front of an ATM at Bistupur on Wednesday. Picture by Bhola Prasad

Day One of a two-day strike by public sector bank workers has left businesses in East Singhbhum to deal with losses to the tune of hundreds of crores.

Speaking to The Telegraph in Jamshedpur, Laghu Udyog Bharati (LUB) national vice president Victor Singh said cheque clearance and financial transactions of around 800 small, medium and large industries located in Adityapur Industrial Area had been affected by the strike. “We expect indirect losses of Rs 250 crore per day,” he said.

Singhbhum Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) vice-president Suresh Sonthalia added the two day strike would lead to losses of over Rs 100 crore for traders in the district. Expressing resentment, the SCCI official said that they would be writing to the Reserve Bank of India governor and Union finance minister, apprising them about the problems faced by customers due to the strike.

“We want the government and regulatory body to take action against the bank unions,” he said. Jamshedpur Chamber of Commerce president Mohanlal Agarwal also supported the SCCI move.

The nationwide strike has been called by all major unions including All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) and All India Bank Officers Association (AIBOA) under the banner of United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU). All 28 public sector banks and three private banks namely Federal Bank, South Indian Bank and ING Vysya Bank downed shutters in the district in response.

Private banks like ICICI, HDFC, Axis and Yes Bank also closed their shutters after union members staged dharnas in front of their branches.

In a first, even ATMs were closed by the union members. More than 90 per cent of ATMs in Jamshedpur remained closed on Wednesday.