Bank Union Protest Nayak Panel Report, May Call Strike

Bank union flays RBI panel report-Hindu Business Line

COIMBATORE, MAY 14:  

The All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) has condemned the Nayak Committee report on bank privatisation. The association has threatened countrywide demonstrations, rallies and protest programmes to demand rejection of the report. “We are also gearing up for a strike call if the report is not rejected,” the association’s General Secretary CH Venkatachalam said. “Banks deal with people’s money; this money therefore should not be used for private loot through private control,” he said.

Union trashes Nayak panel report on governance in banks-Business Standard 15th May 2014

AIBEA on warpath against advise to "privatise" public sector banks

Rejecting any move to privatise public sector banks, All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) today said P J Nayak committee’s advise to cut stake the government stake in PSBs below 50 per cent showed “poverty of wisdom”.

“It is a sad commentary on the wisdom of this Committee that it has recommended banks to be handed over to private hands at a time when the bulk of the bad loans are attributable to the very same private sector”, AIBEA general secretary C H Venkatachalam said.  

More than Rs 4 lakh crore of bad loans are due from these big private corporate and business enterprises. We strongly condemn the retrograde recommendations of the Nayak Committee and demand its outright rejection.

AIBEA in a statement said it will be organise countrywide demonstrations, rallies demanding the rejection of the report. Union will also give a call for strike if the report is not rejected.

Banks deal with people’s money. People’s money should be available for people’s welfare and not for private loot through private control, union said.

Link Business Standard

My comment on Nayak Panel report is as follows 

In my view Nayak panel has done nothing or suggested no such good idea which may help in the improvement of health of Public Sector banks. Panel has not fixed responsibility of erring officials and erring ministers. What they have suggested is nothing but old wine in new bottle. This is purely an attempt to hide the past mistakes of top bankers and regulators and set up a new governance committee, new board for selection of top management etc. 

It has now become clear to RBI and Government of India that they have damaged the fundamentals of public sector banks and time is ripe now for public revolt against regulators. One crystal clear point which emanates from panel report is that RBI and GOI failed to do their duty in last two decades and it is their sheer negligence which has resulted in current critical sickness of PS banks. They remained silent spectators when CEOs of banks were looting banks in the name of credit growth. They remained deaf and dumb when corrupt bankers were humiliating senior officers and workers of banks in the name of merit oriented policy for promotions, transfers and recruitment. They maintained complete silent when politicians were exploiting banks in the name of revival of economy. They were sleeping when legal set up for recovery failed to recover money from defaulters even after lapse of two or three decades.

I am of strong view that health of PS banks have gone from bad to worse during last two decades only due to bad Human resource policy and due to worst execution of good policies. If one peeps into performance and appraisal reports of all officers of last two decades , it will become crystal clear that good officers have always been neglected in all promotion processes and bad officers who were master in flattery and bribery got one after other elevation. And now gang of bad officers is ruling the banks with unity. They unitedly protect bad officers and sideline really good officers similar to case of Mr. Khemka in Harayana .

As long as workers of any organization do not feel satisfaction after doing devoted duty, there is no chance of bank improving their health whatsoever may be the finding and suggestions of Nayak Panel. It is only in PS banks that 20 year or 30 years experienced good officers are rejected and brand new officers in higher scale are recruited directly to please top bosses and politicians. Juniors are ruling seniors  not because they are more intelligent and talented ( barring some exceptions) but because they used money and powerful bosses for getting quicker promotions and got success in getting new job in higher scales.

It is this dirty game of top bankers that health of banks have deteriorated during last  two decades whereas private banks have improved their health under similar and fully same external situations like global recession or natural calamities, or interest rate freedom or recruitment freedom or government policies or legal set up etc.

Officers of PS banks work to please and protect the self interest of their bosses whereas officers in private banks work for betterment and for protection of their organization.

Anger of investors, bank customers, bank staff and that of all concerned against government is on rise due to relentless rise in stressed assets and due to government failure in containing the same and in recovery of bad loan from defaulters. Before it becomes violent, government as usual set up a panel for suggesting alternate ways and switch over the responsibility of failure to another set of body and get rid of punitive action for their past mistakes. And panel is also manned by such persons who can submit reports as per whims and fancies of the officials who are behind all stories of scams, frauds, bad debts and all types of irregularities.

It is the habit of Government; first they exploit the government organization and government fund for self interest and then change the name of the scheme and name of regulators or merge the maligned schemed to some other schemes. In the past many small banks , big banks , rural bank or cooperative banks or chit funds have failed and then merged with some stronger entity to avoid the consequences of public anger against mismanagement and large scale fraudulent activities perpetuated by the management of the failed bank.

As long as officials and the persons who hold the key post in any organization are bad and ill-motivated, no power on earth can stop misuse and pilferage of government money and no power can ensure good health of any public sector undertaking or any department. When top officials in banks are bad, assets created by them will definitely be bad and no power on earth can stop rise in bad assets of these banks. Nothing is to change if rules for constitution of bank’s board are altered or stake of government is diluted to below 50% in PS banks.

This is why they , corrupt bankers in nexus with corrupt team of politicians and regulating officials either write off the bad loans or keep bad loan evergreen by fresh lending or restructure bad loans or sell the bad loans to ARC to clean the balance sheet. All efforts are to conceal evil works and bad assets .This is a usual phenomenon in banks and in all government offices dealing with finance and money. When a bank become weak or goes beyond control, it is merged with some other stronger banks. 

It is the Habit of the government not to cure the root cause of the disease but to make lame excuses for failures or to put carpet on the malady or carry out little surgical operation to befool innocent masses.

And finally flattery and bribery culture is the root cause behind all mismanagement and all scam stories . Weak and ineffective judiciary adds fuel to fire.