ALL INDIA

ALLAHABAD BANK

OFFICERS’ ASSOCIATION

FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION ONLY

VOL. : 17

N0. : 08

AUGUST 2017

EDITORIAL BOARD

CHIEF EDITOR

EDITOR

MEMBERS

:

:

:

DEBMALYA MITRA

P. ANAND

ALL STATE SECRETARIES

AINBOFOFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF

EDITORIAL…

The implementation of this year's Transfer / Repatriation Exercise has been a major challenge to the AIABOA Leadership. A section of Executives had started a serious campaign to put off this year's Transfer / Repatriation Exercise on the pretext of underperformance. It is only through our determined resistance that these damaging campaigns could be resisted. The exercise took off after prolonged delay owing to promotional exercises right from clerical to Officer, up to Scale-VI to Scale-VII. The exercise which was supposed to be over by June'17 as per Govt. Guidelines, officially came to an end on 21st August'17. The exercise, like previous years, brought cheers to hundreds of Officers who were patiently waiting for getting posting to their chosen places. The exercise, like previous years, brought tears to some of our comrades who had to move to other places as a quid pro quo of transfer process. In some States, like Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa & Rajasthan the cut off dates for Repatriation had to be extended beyond stipulated 3 years owing to huge concentration of Officers belonging to these States. While Officers belonging to these States have more or less realised the compulsion of their continuing outside domicile posting, there is still a feeling of being left out in the lurch among some of our friends belonging to these States, especially those who could not be repatriated this year. We once again appeal to all these Officers to appreciate that the repatriation to these States is purely a number game and despite our best efforts the quantum of intake has to be controlled owing to lesser number of Officers eligible for moving outside State. This year's transfer exercise also saw the onset of the painful process of SWAP in the States of Rajasthan & Bihar. There was SWAP for Officers belonging to Orissa within the Circle which again has been an extremely painful process. While going out on SWAP is indeed very painful, we must understand that the process had to be initiated to facilitate incoming of eligible Officers posted outside State for more than 4 or 5 years. This year's process is also marked with large scale violations by FGM-Mumbai which created a stalemate in the circle with most of the Officers refusing to report to their ordered places of posting. The situation is so volatile that your General Secretary along with Com P Anand Rao, the President had to rush to Mumbai to negotiate with the FGM to bring about some changes in the orders. After a satisfactory negotiation with the entire Management's team of FGMO, Mumbai, we are expecting some changes in the orders issued which would help to restore semblance of normalcy in the Circle. We are also continuously in touch with competent authorities at different levels to set right some of the aberrations that have taken place. Other area of concern is non implementation of Rotations / Repatriations within the FGM spans of Mumbai, Delhi, UP, etc., from one Zone to another and also from one State to another. These issues are being continuously followed up by us and we have been assured by the FGM, Delhi that repatriation exercise for eligible Officers shall be effected shortly albeit on a modified cut off. Let us hope that the Management, at these levels, shall realise that an early resolution of these aberrations would help us to jointly move forward to utilise the remaining days till Sept'17 /March, 2018 to achieve the set corporate goals. Any delay, on the other hand, shall put off our further attempts to steer our energy towards a rejuvenated Allahabad Bank.

Dear Comrades,

FROM THE DESK OF THE GENERAL SECRETARY

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PRESS RELEASE BY AIBOC DATED 24.08.2017AIBOC CONDEMNS THE CABINET APPROVAL OF MERGER OF PSBS

“The All India Bank Officers Confederation, AIBOC, the largest officers' organization having membership of around 320000 officers vehemently opposes the in principle approval by the Union Cabinet to set up an Alternative Mechanism to oversee the proposals for consolidation of public sector banks (PSBs) with a view to creating fewer but stronger lenders.

In the Parliament the Minister of State stated that there is no plan for merger. The announcement of merger plan just after a day of successful Nationwide strike indicates that the Government is not bothered about the Public opinion and feedback. This does not augur well for democracy.

This organization has time and again criticized such forced mergers and we will continue to protest such ill conceived plans of merger of Public sector Banks by GOI, NitiAyog and RBI which can wreck havoc on India’s financial mainstay.

We can well understand the fact that the merger of public sector banks is a part of the government's broader plan to privatize the public enterprises to attract foreign investment. Already ICICI, HDFC, Axis which were in the Public Sector have become banks with high foreign holding.

In India and world over, there have been innumerable instances where Mergers and takeovers of banks has been unsuccessful because of reasons like unsuccessful consolidation of banks? working systems and methodology, asymmetric organisation restructuring, improper and hasty communication, inappropriate human resources integration, unsystematic assessment of risk pre-merger, lack of synergy, illogical managerial decision and lack of cultural consideration.

State Bank of India (SBI), India’s largest bank, became even larger with the merger of its five commercial banking subsidiaries on April 1, 2017. This is stated as a success which is not true.

Leading up to the All Fool’s Day merger, in mid-February 2017, finance minister Arun Jaitley was confident the step would make the bank a global player; a month later, SBI chairperson Arundhati Bhattacharya indicated that she expected to boost the bank’s annual profit by Rs 3,000 crore in three years.

When SBI declared its results on May 19, analysts discovered, to their horror, that the path to global greatness lay through a minefield of subsidiaries’ losses, estimated at Rs 5,792 crores in the quarter ended March 2017 and Rs 10,243 crores for the full year. Excluding non-banking SBI subsidiaries such as life and general insurance, which reported annual profits of nearly Rs 2,000 crores, the losses would have been higher. SBI’s recommended dividend of Rs 2.5 per share for FY 2017, will entail an outflow of Rs 2,073 crores, far exceeding the consolidated net profit of Rs 241 crores and the dividend was paid from the bank’s reserves. Post the results, on May 22, SBI’s stock price fell by 4.6% to Rs 294 and it is currently trading Rs 278, indicating investor apprehension with the huge and unexpected losses of its former banking subsidiaries.

Government has always understated the efforts put in by the PSBs and its employees to successfully conduct the various ambitious Social Security Schemes of GOI such as Jan Dhanyojna, Mudra, Standup India etc. Very recently, the country has evidenced the exercise of, demonetization? and it was these public sector banks which have burnt midnight’s fuel to make it happen, though whether it is successful or not is yet in question. The brunt of demonetization had been directly encountered by the common men along with the poor Bankers; the pertinent question still remains unanswered; was it worth? RBI is yet to publish the official data on the amount of Black Money recovered, which was the main objective behind “Demonetization” as depicted by our Prime Minister. Moreover, it took all these PSBs more than 3 months of hard labour and toil to set right the upheavals which were created by demonetization. The Banks could not lend or recover loans for a few months post demonetization. The GOI seems to be opening the gateway for privatization of PSBs, and quite unashamedly brushing aside the contribution of PSBs in implementation of GOIs various social sector schemes. When the Govt wants to lean on PSBs for support, they have been made to do it forcibly, but when the question of supporting PSBs by pumping in fresh capital to revive their capital base comes at this critical juncture, the Govt. has cunningly withdrawn, revealing an abominable double cross. In fact, the Public Sector Banks are spending their hard earned money for expenses related to Jandhan, Demonetization, pension schemes, Swachh Bharat Mission, Yoga Day etc.

The banks need capital for absorbing many of the losses out of stressed assets. It is very unfortunate to learn that the Governor of the regulator of Banks in India commented that merger of banks would help in dealing with the problem of stressed assets of these Banks which is very immature and irresponsible on his part. It is a well-known fact that the NPA position of PSBs today is not the creation of the Banks per se, rather it is to the lopsided policies of successive govts which virtually paved the way for sanction of big ticket size Corporate Loans to a handful of chosen borrowers, most of whom have turned willful defaulters. Neither RBI nor the successive Govt.s could come out with any stringent recovery mechanism for such loans, and have been continually passing the buck on to PSBs. This has been pointed out by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance. The declaration of willful default as a criminal offence is still to see the light of the day, which further worsens the situation for the PSBs. It is the need of the hour that our regulators come out with more teeth for tackling NPAs, as recommended by the Parliament Standing Committee instead of making such irresponsible statements Those handful of corporate loans, which have today cut a sorry NPA profile of PSBs have been thrust upon them without considering external factors like change in International Trade agreements, global market trends etc. Rather, it seems that RBI is hell bent on implementation of BASEL III Norms and Asset Quality Review (AQR) by any means, even knowing that the AQR will result in mounting losses for the banking sector.

Further hardly 5-10 per cent of the 6,32,000 villages have a bank branch of PSBs. The number of rural branches has been reduced from 54 per cent in 1994 to 33 per cent in 2014. Nearly 43 per cent of the rural credit is financed by money lenders, landlords etc. The number of suicides of farmers for want of institutional credit at low interest with long repayment period is on the increase. Hence merger and consolidation of PSBs are sure to be detrimental to the interests of the rural poor particularly farmers who are the backbone of our Nation. We all still remember how the earlier NDA government headed by Vajpayee introduced a bill in the Lok Sabha in December 2000 to reduce the government shareholding to 33 per cent thus paving way for privatization of PSBs. The united determined struggle of the bank employees and officers including through observance of several days? strike to oppose privatization attempt and the solidarity support to the movement extended by a few democratic parties only prevented such a catastrophe. Again the present government is promoting the idea of privatization of PSBs. We would like to reiterate and put it in clear terms that we strongly resist the ill motivated ploy of merger and acquisition of Public sector Banks by the govt and the RBI. We also demand the immediate implementation of the recommendations of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance on NPAs and if it is done and NPA comes down then there is no need for additional capital. In a nutshell, merger is a step towards privatization only and the people of the country whose taxes have contributed to the Public Sector Banks should oppose this move. UFBU consisting of 9 Unions including AIBOC is launching a massive campaign and will intensify the agitations if the move continues. Demonstrations are taking place today and next week days all over the country.”

Sd/ D.T.FRANCOGENERAL SECRETARY

AIBOC’S LETTER NO. AIBOC/2017/47 DT. 21.08.2017 TO CHAIRMAN, IBAPARTICIPATION IN STRIKE BY OFFICERS IN SCALE IV & ABOVE

“ It has been brought to our notice that Bank Managements have been asked by the Indian Banks Association to issue Circular that Officers in Scale IV and above are not members of the Association and they should not participate in the strike.

The Constitution provides for association of people and nobody can be prevented from joining an association. Freedom of expression is also provided by the Constitution and strike is a form of expression of grievances.

This kind of instructions with an ulterior motive of divide and rule will lead to deterioration in the industrial relations and we request you to inform member banks to stop sending these type of circulars which are illegal.

The issues leading to the strike are long pending issues and we have been expressing to IBA and the Government including on 16th & 18thNegotiations. The issues are in the interest of the Banking Industry and the Nation. Hence once again we appeal to you to see reason and take steps to resolve the issues, and advise Banks to stop giving illegal orders.”

Sd/ D. T. FRANCOGENERAL SECRETARY

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UFBU SUBMISSIONS TO CHIEF LABOUR COMMISSIONERREG. : STRIKE NOTICE DATED 03-08-2017 BY UFBU ON IBAREF. : YOUR OFFICE COMMUNICATION DATED 10-08-2017

“In accordance with the provisions contained in sub-section (1) of Section 22 of the I.D. Act – 1947, we had given notice that members of the constituent unions of United Forum of Bank Unions (AIBEA, AIBOC,

ndNCBE, AIBOA, BEFI, INBEF, INBOC, NOBW, NOBO) propose to go on strike on the 22 August, 2017 on the following issues and demands :

1. Do not privatise Public Sector Banks2. Stop plans of mergers and consolidation of Banks3. Do not write off corporate Non-Performing Assets(NPAs)4. Declare wilful Default of Bank loans as criminal offence5. Implement recommendations of Parliamentary Committee on recovery of NPAs6. Ensure accountability of Top Management/Executives for bad loans and put in place stringent

measures to recover bad loans. 7. Withdraw proposed FRDI Bill 8. Abolish Banks Board Bureau9. Do not pass on the burden of corporate NPAs on bank customers by hiking charges10. Do not increase Service Charges in the name of GST11. Reimbursement of cost of demonetization and other Government Schemes to Banks by the

Government.12. Settle issues of Employees and Officers connected with demonetisation scheme.13. Immediately fill up posts of Employee/Officer Director(s) in Bank(s)14. Implement Compassionate Appointment Schemes in Banks as per Government guidelines.15. Removal of Gratuity Ceiling under Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972 & Total Exemption of

Income Tax on Gratuity and Leave Encashment on retirement16. Pension related issues Improvements in Pension Scheme similar to RBI/Central Government

including for past retirees - Extension of erstwhile Pension Scheme in banks in lieu of NPS - Follow-up of Record Note dated 25.05.2015

17. Adequate Recruitment in all cadres

While thanking you for your intervention and arranging this conciliation meeting, we wish to submit to you the following reasons and justifications of the issues and demands raised by us.

1. Do not privatise Public Sector BanksAs of now there are 20 Public Sector Banks in our country and together with the 52 Regional Rural Banks which are also in public sector, these Banks constitute nearly 80% of the banking business in our country. Thus public sector banks are the main engines of economic growth and development.

In a developing country like India, we need resources for development. Know as we do about the constraints in finding resources for development, Banks have been playing a vital role in mobilizing the savings of the people

and making them available for the developmental projects. Private Banks have their limited and profit making role and hence public sector banks and public sector banking are inevitable for our country’s future growth and progress. When economic progress is the avowed objective of the Government, public sector banks have to be further strengthened to enable them to play this patriotic role. Hence Banks are not be privatized.

All of us know that nearly 80% of the deposits of the Banks are domestic savings of the poor and common masses and this precious social capital has to be preserved for utilisation for developmental role. Moreover, this savings needs to be protected against abuse and misuse and people’s money needs to be guaranteed. Given the bitter experience of so many private banks abusing and misusing depositors’ money leading to closure of banks, we need to be doubly careful and guarantee the safety of people’s money which is most possible in a public sector institution. Hence our Banks are not to be privatized.

Even under the path of development, the needs of sectors like agriculture, employment generation, poverty alleviation, women empowerment, rural development, health and education, infrastructure, etc, are of priority importance and credit is to be available in big measure for these sectors. Important sectors like agriculture, poverty reduction programmes need to be given credit at cheaper rates necessitating cross-subsidisation. This is possible only in public sector institutions with social orientation unlike private banks which are solely profit oriented. Hence Banks are not to be privatized.

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But it is observed that there are various measures afoot towards diluting the ownership control of the public sector banks leading to privatization of Banks.

On the one side Government is denying adequate capital to the public sector banks to pressurize more private capital to be augmented. On the other hand, banking is so much liberalized to allow all types of private enterprises to do banking business and corner creamy banking business. In the absence of enough capital provision by the Government, PSBs will be either crippled or forced to be privatized for survival.

Hence Government should give up the present measures which would dilute public sector banks and result in privatization of banks. Country needs economic development for that we need vibrant and effective public sector banking institutions.

2. Stop plans of mergers and consolidation of BanksPublic Sector Banks have expanded in our country and hence banking is now by and large available to common people at more and more places and villages. But there is still a great scope and need to further expand to reach all people and places. Banking needs to be more inclusive and make banking services accessible to everyone. This is one of reasons for schemes like Jan Dhan Yojana. Even now large number of people are not able to access banking. Even by global comparison, banking density in India is one of the lowest indicating that banking needs to be expanded in India. But Government is now talking of mergers and consolidation of banks. According to all reports, mergers would result in closure of branches and reduction in banking accessibility. Mergers would reduce employment potential when our country needs more employment generation. Further, if Banks are made bigger by merger, there is no guarantee that big banks will be strong banks. In many countries big banks have tended to take big risks and have landed in bigger troubles. In India, our banks function with people’s money & we cannot afford to take such risks with people’s money. We need expansion and not consolidation. There is no evidence that big banks are more efficient rather they are risky. Hence Government should give up the present plans of merger of our Banks.

3. Do not write off corporate Non-Performing Assets(NPAs)The only major problem faced by the Banks today is the alarming increase in bad loans. It is around Rs. 15 lac crores including the loans restructured by the banks. It is well-known that bulk of these NPAs are bad loans due from big borrowers and corporate houses. Earlier they were called bad and doubtful debts, then called as bad loans, till recently as Non Performing Assets and stressed assets but recently nomenclature as dues from non-cooperative borrowers. While some loans becoming bad can be expected and accepted in banking business, today taking loans from banks and making it as NPA has become an exquisite art. Many huge NPAs are deliberately defaulted and hence are wilful defaulters under the RBI norms. No serious efforts are being taken to recover loans given. What is being done is NPA reduction, NPA restructuring, NPA management, NPA resolution, NPA provisioning, NPA write off but no concrete measures are taken for NPA recovery. It is well-known that no interest is received on these bad loans.

Thus, on an average, Banks are deprived of an annual interest income/ revenue of about Rs. 1,50,000 crores. To that extent Banks’ profits are dampened and depressed. Adding oil to fire, from the income earned from

other performing loans, huge amount is set off and provided bad loans.

Rs. In crores 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16Gross Operating Profit 127653 138721 137306Provisions for bad loans, etc. 90633 100901 155713Net profit / Loss 37019 37540 (-)18417

From such provisions made from the earned profits, loans are finally written off.

BAD LOANS WRITTEN OFF2012-13 27,231 cr 2015-16 57,586 cr2013-14 34,409 cr 2016-17 81,683 cr2014-15 49,018 cr In 5 years 249,927 cr

If the account-wise details of these write offs are brought out, it will be revealed that it is in favour of big corporate borrowers. All of them have capacity to repay, and hence it is big drain on banks and national economy. Hence we demand that corporate NPAs should be recovered and not written off.

4. Declare wilful Default of Bank loans as criminal offenceRBI has defined borrowers as wilful defaulters if the loans taken by them are misused, diverted, siphoned off, etc. There are number of loans which come under this definition. They are deliberate defaulters and hence we are demanding that the names of these will defaulters be published publicly and such wilful default be termed as criminal offence and suitable criminal action should be taken against them. RBI Act should be amended to provide for publication of the names of these defaulters.

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5. Implement recommendations of Parliamentary Committee on recovery of NPAsThe Standing Committee of the Parliament on Finance has discussed the issue of increasing bad loans in the

stBanks on many occasion and l year they submitted a report to the Government suggesting ways and means to take action on the erring borrowers and to recover the bad loans./ So far no action has been taken on this Report’s recommendations. Hence it is our demand that the recommendations of the Parliamentary Committee be accepted and implemented to ensure better recovery of bad loans.

6. Ensure accountability of Top Management/Executives for bad loans and put in place stringent measures to recover bad loansBanking is handling people’s money. Hence there has to be proper accountability norms when we deal with people’s money. While there are rules and regulations on accountability for employees and officers at the lower leave, when it comes to top management, there seems to be laxity to provide for strict rules of accountability. Especially, when huge powers are given to the top Executives for sanctioning big loans and also to write off the loans, such provisions are very crucial.

7. Withdraw proposed FRDI BillAlready there are many rules and legislations are in place under the existing laws and Acts. The objective of this Bill is obviously to heavily empower the new authority with sweeping powers to dismantle and erase public sector financial institutions like banks and insurance companies and hence it is apparently draconian. Hence we demand the withdrawal of this Bill.

8. Abolish Banks Board BureauBanks Board Bureau has been administratively created as a super boss to deal with the affairs of banks that are created under the statute of Parliament. Accountability of the decisions of this body are not transparent and it is observed that this body is seeking to override and bypass defined authorities even on policy matters of the Government. We feel that this body is superfluous and hence needs to be abolished.

9. Do not pass on the burden of corporate NPAs on bank customers by hiking chargesWe have already stated that huge amount of earnings and income of the banks are set off against bad loans of big borrowers. Consequently, the profits and profitability of the banks are adversely impacted. Some of the Banks are compelled to show losses though earning very good operating profits. Instead of recovering the bad loans and preventing these losses, banks are increasing the charges to the common customers for all types of normal banking services. Even penal charges are made applicable. Now, interest rate on savings deposits of small customers are reduced while write off of crores of rupees of bad loans for corporate borrowers goes unabated. We demand that this passing on the burden of bad loans on the ordinary bank customers is unfair and hence to be stopped.

10. Do not increase Service Charges in the name of GSTWith the introduction of GST, the additional tax is being levied on the customers. Either it should be borne by the Banks or the GST for banking services should be reduced.

11. Reimbursement of cost of demonetisation and other Government Schemes to Banks by the Government.Demonetisation scheme was announced by the Government in Nov.2016 to deal with black money, fake notes, etc. Banks were asked to handle the scheme for its implementation. The whole country witnessed the magnificent manner in which banks and banking staff handled such a tough situation. In the process Banks have incurred substantial amount as expenses and this has further impacted on their profits. When Banks are already facing challenges of reduction in profits, it is expected that Government should reimburse the Banks the cost of implementing the demonetisation scheme.

12. Settle issues of Employees and Officers connected with demonetisation scheme.While employees and officers of banks were extracted with unprecedentedly heavy work in implementing the scheme by sitting very late hours on daily basis, including on holidays, it is most unfortunate that the compensation for such additionally work legally entitled to them has not been paid so far. We demand the same to be paid immediately.

13. Immediately fill up posts of Employee/Officer Director(s) in Bank(s)The Bank Nationalisation Act provides for appointment of Board of Directors of the Banks and the scheme therein provides for appointment of a Workman Employee Director and an Officer Employee Director. The scheme is in vogue since 1972 and for 43 years, it was being implemented. Ever since the present Government came to power, the appointment of the Employee and Officer Directors have been stopped. It is unilaterally, arbitrary, illegal, undemocratic and denial of workers’ participation as envisaged in the Scheme. We demand that these posts should be filled up immediately. When the Government believes and talks of good governance, this is expected of them to adhere to the scheme.

14. Implement Compassionate Appointment Schemes in Banks as per Government guidelinesFor more than 30 years, banks were extending jobs to the eligible family member of an employee or officer upon death while in service as a compassionate scheme. This scheme was unilaterally withdrawn by the banks. After prolonged agitation, struggles and strikes, the Government interfered and issued guidelines to implement the Government scheme in the Banks. Government scheme provides for employment to the eligible family member of the family of the deceased employee/officer. But some Banks have unilaterally changed the scheme from jobs to money compensation. We demand that the Government scheme as agreed by the Government and IBA should be implemented in all the banks.

15. Removal of Gratuity Ceiling under Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972 & Total Exemption of Income Tax on Gratuity and Leave Encashment on retirementAt present there is a ceiling of Rs. 10 lacs for payment of Gratuity under the Gratuity Act. Since Gratuity amount ceiling has been increased for government employees, RBI, etc, there is a need to revise and increase the ceiling under the Gratuity Act also. While there are reports that the Labour Ministry has agreed to this proposal, the amendment to the Act has not been done so far. Our demand is to expedite the amendment and implement it from 1-1-2016 as in the case of government employees.Also, there is ceiling for exemption of retirement benefits from payment of income tax. We demand that this ceiling needs to be removed to enable employees and officers to get the full benefit of the retirement benefits paid to them on the lines of other employees.

16. Pension related issues - Improvements in Pension Scheme similar to RBI/Central Government including for past retirees - Extension of erstwhile Pension Scheme in banks in lieu of NPS - Follow-up of Record Note dated 25.05.2015Pension scheme was introduced in banks on the lines of government/RBI scheme. While improvements have been made in their scheme, the same are being denied in the banks. Other demands have raised by us for up-dation of pension, family pension, uniform DA for past retirees, etc. All these were discussed and a record note was signed on 25-5-2015. But two years are over and there is delay in discussing the issues further. We have also been demanding extension of DA linked pension scheme for employees recruited after 1-4-2010. All these issues are being ignored by the managements/IBA and we demand resolution of these demands expeditiously.

17. Adequate Recruitment in all cadres:While Government, managements and everyone is taking about efficiency and better customer service in the banks, adequate staff are not being provided. On the other hand, more and more Government schemes are being foisted and forced on the Banks. All these schemes require more manpower. Hence our demand for adequate recruitment in the banks.We seek your intervention to conciliate these demands with a view to find amicable resolution of the issues and to restore industrial harmony in this vital so that the strike can be averted.”

Sd/ SANJEEV K BANDLISHCONVENOR, UFBU

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SBI CUTS STAFF BY AT LEAST 6,000 - WILL REDEPLOY 10,000 EMPLOYEES

The State Bank of India (SBI) cut down its staff by at least 6,000 from 2.80 lakh to 2.73 lakh in Q1 of FY18. The exits were due to retirements and voluntary retirement scheme. SBI, now, wants to redeploy more than 10,000 employees keeping merger with associate banks and also digitisation in mind.

The restructuring comes after the big merger. So far, SBI has merged 594 branches and rationalised 122 administrative offices. This in itself is expected to result in savings of over Rs 1,160 crore annually. As a part of re-deployment, SBI will have staff in government service branches.Around 30% of the staff of rationalised branches will be redeployed in sales functions. The bank has introduced a new employee appraisal system where performers will receive financial incentives. Also, SBI hired just 625 staff members in the first quarter. The bank is recruiting specialists for digital space and marketing though not in large numbers.

[COURTESY : Business Insider India Bureau, 14.08.2017]

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REVISION OF ENTITLEMENTS OF MOBILE / RESIDENTIAL TELEPHONES

The issue of revision of entitlements of Reimbursement of Mobile expenses which were last revised vide HOIC No. 11997 dated 17.07.2012 has been raised and followed up persistently, by the AIABOA, before the Management, due to which the said entitlements have since been revised vide HOIC No. 15216 dated 29.08.2017 as per the approval of the Bank’s Board on 10.08.2017.

CATEGORY EXISTING / MONTH REVISED / MONTH Branch Heads in Scale I II & III 300/400/500 1000Other Senior Managers 400 500 Other Scale II Managers 300 400 Other Scale I Officers /Asstt. Managers 200 300

The entitlements of reimbursement of Mobile expenses in case of Officers in SMGS-IV & V & TEGS-VI & VII have remained unchanged.

The entitlements in case of reimbursement of expenses on account of Residential land line phones have remained unchanged.

The cost limits of Mobile handsets and Ipads have been revised as under :MOBILE SET IPAD

General Managers / FGMs 25000 55000 Deputy Gen. Managers 20000 55000 Asstt. Gen. Managers -Zonal Heads 12000 55000Other AGMs 12000 NA Scale I II III & IV Branch Heads 8000 NA

The reimbursement of ipad expenses in case of Officers in TEGS-VI & VII and in case of all the Zonal Heads has been fixed as Rs.1000/M

SANS FUND INFUSION PSB MERGERS WONT IMPROVE CAPITALIZATION

The Union Cabinet’s decision to speed up the merger of public sector banks (PSBs) will not improve their weak capitalization without capital infusion from the government, Moody’s Investors Service said today. The decision to set up a ministerial panel led by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to consider and oversee mergers among the country’s 21 PSBs is “credit positive because mergers would provide scale efficiencies and improve the quality of corporate governance”, it said in a statement.

“However, absent fresh capital infusions from the government, such mergers would not improve public sector banks’ weak capitalization,” it added. Government owns majority stakes in 21 banks and the merger of some of them is being considered for broader economic revival. These lenders account for more than two-thirds of banking assets in India.

“Poor corporate governance has been a structural credit weakness at public sector banks, and managing all 21 has proven to be unwieldy for the government, which has been unable to pay sufficient attention to key issues such as long-term strategies and human resources. Consolidation would address some of these issues,” Moody’s said.

The global credit rating agency said that consolidating PSBs would also help from a scale perspective. PSBs hold around 74 per cent of all deposits, it said, adding that with the exception of State Bank of India, none of the others is large enough to have a competitive advantage.

“This may change with consolidation, given the potential for some of these banks to grow to levels that exceed even large private sector banks,” it said. Notwithstanding the positive effect on corporate governance and scale efficiencies, any proposed mergers would not improve PSBs’ weak capitalization.

Moody’s said most them have weak capital levels and merging two or more entities with weak capital levels will create a larger entity with weak capital. “Until there is clear visibility on the merger process, including which entities would merge with and the terms of such a merger, public sector banks will continue to have difficulty accessing the equity capital markets as investors demand clarity on these details.

“As a result, we continue to believe that capital infusions from the government remain key to improving these banks’ capital levels,” it added. The Cabinet approval, it said, is only the first step in the complex process. “However, we believe that there is a high probability that the mergers will take place given the government’s apparent willingness to see this through.” [COURTESY : The Hindu- Business Line , Dated 28.08.2017 ]

HISTORIC SUCCESS OF STRIKE ACTION - !

As per the call given by the United Forum of Bank Unions, UFBU, the entire Banking operations in the Country came to a grinding halt on 22.08.2017. The participation of youngsters including the Lady Comrades in the Strike was overwhelming every where.

CRESCENDO congratulates the entire membership for making the Strike action programme such a roaring success.

MASSES SPEAK ON 22.08.2017

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GENERAL MEETING OF OFFICERS AT NAGPUR

The above was held at the Civil lines Branch, Nagpur on 30.08.2017 which was attended by the President, AIABOA & the General Secretary, AIABOA, besides Com. Sanjay Kuthe, the State President, MS-II, Com. Sumedh Wasnik, the State Secretary and many Members posted in and around Nagpur.

Com. Debmalya Mitra in his address explained in detail the nitty gritty of the recent exercise of Transfers at HO level & also at various Circles and the role of the Association in evolving a sound policy, based on equitable principles at HO and more importantly in ensuring the implementation of the same across the length and breadth of the Country. He also shared with the House the difficulties being experienced by the Association despite its best efforts, regarding timely Repatriation of Officers belonging to the States of Bihar, Odisha, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, etc., He urged on the Members not to fall prey to the false promises of certain elements in the matter, but to continue to strengthen the Association with their mite. He broadly touched up on the Turn Around Plan recently signed by the Association with the Management and impressed up on the House the importance of continued focus on Retail Business and Recovery with more vigour and perseverance at all levels. He highlighted the efforts of the Association in the area of improvement of essential Perquisites which require periodical review and upward revision following which, the entitlements of reimbursement of Mobile expenses have been improved uniformly in case of all the Officers in Scale I ,II & III.

Com. Anand Rao detailed the roots of Officers’ Trade union movement in Banking industry, which was having limited agenda during the earlier days. Today, the Officers’ Association under the proud banner of the AIBOC has an effective participation in every relevant policy of the Bank concerning the Bank as well as the Officers. He requested the Members to appreciate that the policies being evolved at HO / FGMO levels in consultation with the Association will have to be implemented uniformly in case of all the Officers, irrespective of whether they are Members or otherwise. He further clarified that the Transfers of Officers have to be based on certain sound principles equally applicable to all the Members and others also. He also stressed the impending need to have a consistent and comprehensive policy, in case of Transfers of Specialist Officers and Lady Officers whose number is constantly increasing in the Banking industry. He urged on the Members to have regular communication with the State Leadership so that the issues pertaining to them are addressed properly in time.

The Vote of thanks was proposed by Com. Harshal Mahadule.

The President & the General Secretary, AIABOA called on the DGM, Nagpur, Sri R.S. Bhatt earlier and shared with him the issues relating to the Bank and the Officers in general. It was a useful interaction with the Zonal Head who apprised the Leaders about the present Business position in the Zone.

ABERRATIONS IN TRANSFER EXERCISE UNDER SPAN OF FGM MUMBAI

The above issue has been represented by the General Secretary, AIABOA, vide letter No. 20 dated 18.08.2017 addressed to FGM, Mumbai. The Association called on the FGM, Mumbai in a Delegation, that included Com. P Anand Rao, the President, AIABOA Com. Debmalya Mitra, the General Secretary, Com. Jeevan Bhambure, the State President, MS-I, Com. Pooja Dhurandhar, the State Secretary and others, on 29.08.2017. The FGM, Sri S L Jain who gave a patient hearing to the Delegation, assured that any deviations from the guidelines of the Head Office will be considered with an open mind with specific reference to the Transfer of Officers aged above 57 years. Regarding the other issues raised by the Association, he assured that the needful may be done in phased manner, keeping in view the chain of Transfers already effected and the related administrative constraints thereof. He requested the cooperation of the Association in every aspect, so that the Bank can successfully come out of the present situation at the earliest. The Association assured the FGM of its continued support in this regard.

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AIABOA’S LETTER NO. CC/2017/20 DT. 18.08.2017 TO FGM, MUMBAI VIOLATION IN TRANSFER PROCESS

“While going through the transfers effected by your FGMO during the ongoing transfer process it has been observed with concern that serious violations have taken place while issuing transfer orders within your Circle by your office. Some of the violations are listed below :-

1 In gross violation of the long standing understanding with the Bank and in violation of the assurance given rdby the Management during the Small Committee Meeting held in HO on 03 August 2017, Two of our State

Secretaries E.g., Shri Sumedh Wasnik of MS-II State Unit and Shri Advait Malhotra of Gujarat State Unit have been issued transfer orders outside the functional area of their State Units ;

2 Lady Officers belonging to Scale-1 have been issued transfer orders outside their State / Zone of domicile in violation of Bank’s Transfer / Placement Policy ; 3 The officers coming from the State of Rajasthan on swap have been posted in far off Zones like Mumbai & Nagpur instead of the neighboring Ahmedabad Zone in violation of the understanding of swap reached with t h e H O Management ;

4 Rotational transfers from one Zone to other within the State of Maharashtra as discussed in the CLMRC and as per the prevailing practice have not been considered even after completion of tenure of Officers . Similarly genuine request transfers on the grounds of medical and others have also not been considered.

As a result of the aforesaid transfers, serious resentment is brewing amongst the officers of different Zones under your FGMO and we feel constrained to bring the matter to your personal attention. Your aforesaid acts shall seriously hamper the ongoing recovery drives of your Circle which is a matter of serious concern to us. With all of us fighting day and night to save our beloved Bank from the threat of PCA, your aforesaid actions are sure to create total negativity amongst the Officers of your Circle and may seriously hamper the ongoing recovery exercise.

We request you to please review the aforesaid transfers effected by your FGMO and immediately revise the same in terms of Transfer Policy and long standing understanding with the Bank.

An affirmative action on your part shall immediately send a positive signal amongst the entire Officers’ Community within your Circle and enable us to play a more active role in motivating the officers to take part in Recovery drives more aggressively.”

Sd/ DEBMALYA MITRAGENERAL SECRETARYCopy to The General Manager (HR), Head Office :

This has reference to the discussions held with you regarding the recent transfer orders issued by FGMO (Mumbai). We request you to note the orders listed hereinabove are gross violation of the decisions arrived at the Small Committee Meeting at HO on 03rd August’17. Please take up the matter suitably with FGMO (Mumbai) for immediate rectification of the same. We once again request you to note the aforesaid transfer-orders have totally demoralized the entire officers’ community of Mumbai FGMO and if corrective steps are not immediately taken it may seriously hamper the ongoing recovery drive of the Bank in the said FGMO.

JAN DHAN HAS GIVEN WINGS TO MILLIONS OF ASPIRATIONS

On the completion of three years of the Jan Dhan Yojana, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said the government has given “wings to millions of aspirations” through this scheme as also the social security schemes, Mudra Yojana and Stand-Up India programme. He said the government’s efforts to bring about a qualitative and transformative change in the lives of the poor and marginalized continue with “immense vigour”.

“Today, Jan Dhan Yojana completes 3 years. I congratulate the crores of people, particularly the poor, who benefitted from this initiative,” Modi tweeted. “Jan Dhan Revolution is a historic movement to bring the poor, downtrodden and marginalized into the financial mainstream,” he added.

In another tweet, he said, “Through Jan Dhan Yojana, social security schemes, MUDRA & Stand-Up India, we have given wings to millions of aspirations.” Yesterday, the Prime Minister had said 30 crore new families have got Jan Dhan accounts, in which almost Rs. 65,000 crore has been deposited. He had said he felt “a great sense of fulfillment that within three years, the last man on the fringes of society has become a part of the mainstream economy of the country.”

[COURTESY : The Hindu- Business Line, Dated 28.08.2017]

CAG PUNCHES HOLES IN RECAPITALIZATION OF PUBLIC SECTOR BANKS

The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has found gaping holes in the recapitalization of public sector banks (PSBs), stating that the recovery rate of non-performing loans was in general lower than the write-off rate between 2010-11 and 2014-15. There is a need for the Department of Financial Services (DFS) to ensure that PSBs increase the quantum of recovery vis-à-vis write-offs, the CAG said in a report tabled in the Lok Sabha on Friday.

NPAs Not RecognizedThe Government auditor also found instances of lower recognition of NPAs (non-performing assets) and, hence, over-projection of net profits in 12 PSBs, where there was a material difference (beyond 15 per cent) between NPAs recognized by banks and those ascertained by the RBI. Gross NPAs of PSBs have surged from Rs.2.27 lakh Crore as of March 31, 2014, to Rs.6.83 lakh Crore as of end-March 2017.

Although the DFS had decided that performance parameters listed in the MoUs with individual PSBs (signed in February/March 2012) would be the basis for future capital infusion, this was not adhered to in practice, the CAG said. The CAG has recommended that an effective monitoring system be put in place to ensure fulfillment of intended objectives of capital infusion.

The Centre, as the majority shareholder, had infused Rs.1,18,724 Crore of capital from 2008-09 to 2016-17 in PSBs to help meet their capital adequacy requirements or based on their performance. The estimation of the parameters based on which capital was infused altered from year to year and often within different tranches of the same year, the CAG report said.

Also, in some cases, the rationale for distribution of the Centre’s capital among different PSBs was not on record. Some banks, which did not qualify for additional capital as per decided norms, were given capital. While one bank was given more capital than required, others did not receive the requisite funding to meet their capital adequacy requirements.

Against the target under Mission Indradhanush of PSBs raising Rs.1.10 lakh crore capital from the market between 2015-16 and 2018-19, only Rs.7,726 crore could be raised from January 2015 to March 2017. “Considering the commitment to the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) that the market would not be flooded by multiple banking equity issues at the same time, the achievement of this target by March 2018 appears doubtful”, the CAG report said.

Variation in targetsThe report also highlighted that the target set in the MoUs (performance-linked capital infusion) varied substantially from the targets set in the Statement of Intent of the PSBs. While 273 progress reports on MoUs were due from PSBs, only 21 were actually received, indicating deficient monitoring of the MoUs through progress reports.

The achievements against the MoU targets were also poor. The audit also noticed that the conditions that had been stipulated while sanctioning capital infusion in the PSBs (2010-11) were significantly different from the targets set in the statement of intent for the same period.

[COURTESY : The Hindu-Business Line, Dated 28.07.2017]

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PRADHAN MANTRI JAN DHAN YOJANA (Beneficiaries as on 16.08.2017)(All figures in Crore)

Bank Total Beneficiaries at Beneficiaries at RuPay cards Balance in Category Beneficiaries Rural/SU centre Urban/Metro centre issued to beneficiary

Bank branches Bank branches beneficiaries accounts

Public Sector 23.79 13.00 10.79 18.24 52099.35Regional Rural 4.78 4.06 0.72 3.58 11713.17Private Sector 0.96 0.58 0.38 0.89 2032.16

Total 29.52 17.64 11.88 22.71 65844.68

Disclaimer : Information is based upon the data as submitted by different banks.

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2 DAYS OF ATHMA MANTHAN WITH YOUTH AT KOLKATA – CITY OF JOY

The Youth Convention held on 26.08.2017 & 27.08.2017 at Kolkata was a great introspection, learning experience and togetherness. The AIBOC, West Bengal State Unit, had made all possible arrangements within a short span of time. The Delegates were split into 16 groups in the post lunch session and discussed among themselves on various topics. The following are the recommendations of the future leaders who have taken oath to take the organization to greater heights.NPS : NPS to be converted into an assured NPS to be converted into an assured Pension Scheme as it is a Social Security. Income Tax exemption needed for the returns.Technology : Banks should integrate all data including HR Data. Care to be taken to serve the larger majority who are semi literates and not tech savvy.NPA : Entire economy is affected. Govt should come forward with stringent measures for recovery. Waiver of Agriculture loans should be for borrowers who have repaid also.CTC : Cost to Company should not be accepted in Banking IndustryPerformance Based Salary Incentive : Everyone have to get a uniform salary. ESOP can be debated –to be given to all. Incentive is equal to bribe and leads to Divide and Rule. Appreciation can be done without monetary incentive.Ethical Banking & Cross Selling : Cross Selling has become a menace. Stop incentive for Cross Selling. Ethics and Cross Selling cannot co exist. Separate Vertical should take care of Cross Selling Products.Connecting Dots with Youth : Provide opportunity for leadership. Have Cadre Development Programmes in States. Have care and Empathy. Accept Dissenting Voices. Motivate by recognition. Share responsibility.Work Life Balance : Regulated Working Hours has to be followed. 5 Day week. Work will never stop. So plan accordingly. Sitting late is not performanceNew Alternative ways to Resistance : Provide front page advertisement in Newspapers. Interact with Public –the customers. Use media and Social Media. Have more meetings with People. Organize People?s Parliament well. Involve family members, relatives , friends and customers at Dharnas and Strikes.Demonetization : Was total failure. Corporate benefited through Digital Platform. Paytm–biggest beneficiary. Should demand report from RBI & Finance Ministry.RBI-BBB, DFI & Consultants : Multiple agencies lead to spoilsport. Establish norms which benefit the country. Appoint Officer / Employee Director. Provide autonomy to the Banks.New Ways of Banking : Use technology of voice recognition, face reading & Biometric. Privacy of individuals to be taken care of. Personal Banking is what people want.Decoding Banking Sector Reforms : In the name of reform dismantling Public Sector. Merger is step towards privatization. Private Banks cannot serve the masses. Contribution of Public Sector Bank not recognized. Intensify agitation. Defend Public Sector with People?s support.The Second day witnessed presentation by the group leaders, who were given the stage and shared the dais with Com Dilip Saha, the President, AIBOC. All the speakers in the session, presented their topic with great gusto and fervour and displayed excellent presentation skills. Oath Taken : The youth serving the Nation through the Banking Sector take pledge that they will not allow privatization and merger of Public Sector Banks. Take pledge that they stand for Gender Equality, Unity above Caste, Creed, Language and Religion. Take pledge that they strive for equality, Equity and preserve the values of the constitution of India.

DEMONETIZATION - RBI DATA SHOWS 99 % OF BANNED NOTES RETURNEDAs per the data released by the RBI in its annual report on Wednesday (30.08.2017), of the Rs 15.44 lakh crore of notes taken out of circulation with Demonetization of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes on 8 November,2016, Rs 15.28 lakh crore returned to the system by way of deposits by the public. According to the annual report for the last fiscal, 89 Million pieces of the banned Rs 1,000 totaling Rs 8,900 crore had not been returned, out of 6,858 Million such notes. This amounts to 1.3 percent of the Rs 1,000 notes in circulation before the Demonetization announcement on 08.11.2016. "Subject to future corrections based on verification process when completed, the estimated value of SBNs (specified bank notes) received as on June 30, 2017 is Rs 15.28 Trillion", the RBI said in the report. After announcing the Demonetization of currency notes, it was said the government estimated at least Rs 3 lakh crore would not return to the system. This would mean an equal amount black money would get extinguished and liability of the RBI would reduce. [COURTESY: FIRST POST, 30.08.2017]