Not all banks are going to be privatised: FM Sitharaman

Attempting to allay the concerns of public sector bank employees, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday said that all banks will not be privatised. The minister also assured that all interests of the workers of the banks would be protected.

"We have announced a public enterprise policy, where we have identified four areas where public sector presence will be there. In this, the financial sector too, is there. Not all banks are going to be privatised," Sitharaman told reporters during a press conference in New Delhi on Tuesday.

Even for those banks which are likely to be privatised, the privatised institutions too will continue to function after privatisation; the interests of the staff will be protected, the finance minister said. "Interests of workers of banks which are likely to be privatised will absolutely be protected—whether their salaries or scale or pension—all will be taken care of," she said.

Her comments come amid the second day of the two-day nationwide strike led by nine unions of public sector banks (PSBs) in the country, opposing the government's policy to privatise the lenders.

Unions on Monday said nearly 10 lakh staffers across the country have participated in the strike, terming it a "success".