Bank employees and officers staging a demonstration in Dindigul on Tuesday.
| Photo Credit: G. KARTHIKEYAN
Financial activities across Dindigul district came to a grinding halt on Tuesday as bank employees and officers joined a nationwide one-day strike. The agitation, which demanded a transition to a ‘five-day work week’, resulted in an estimated crores of rupees loss in daily banking transactions.
The protesters raised slogans urging the central government and the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) to immediately implement a ‘five-day work week’ for all banking personnel, citing the need for better work-life balance and operational efficiency.
The strike saw massive participation across the district, where 352 branches of various nationalised banks operate. With the majority of staff and officers abstaining from work, bank branches in Dindigul city and surrounding rural areas remained shuttered. Many branches displayed strike notices at their entrances to inform the public.
The timing of the strike exacerbated the struggle for the common public and the business community. Since banks were already closed for three consecutive days (from the January 24 to 26), the strike on January 27 meant that banking services were unavailable for four days in a row.
Some of the fallout included, severe delays in clearing cheques, processing demand drafts (DD), and manual cash deposits/withdrawals and several ATM centres across the district ran out of cash, leaving citizens without access to emergency funds.
As part of the protest, a large demonstration was held near Vani Vilas in Dindigul. The rally was led by Muthukumar, Regional Deputy General Secretary of the All India Overseas Bank Employees Union.
Published – January 27, 2026 09:25 pm IST
