In a letter to Prime Minister Modi, the Bank Mitras have urged him to look into all these matters
Ghazanfar Abbas, IndiaTomorrow.net,
New Delhi, June 10: The success figures of Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) often come first in the mind and on the tongue of Prime Minister Narendra Modi whenever he speaks about some big achievements of his government at the centre. But tens of thousands of Bank Mitras who played crucial role in making the PMJDY a great success, and whose role was appreciated by the government also, are now feeling cheated. Why?
“In August 2014, PM promised that a minimum of Rs 5000/- would be given as salary to us but nothing has happened yet. Our salary is pending for last 30 months. As a total amount, each Bank Mitra should get Rs 1.5 lac now,” says Adesh Shankhdar from Shahjahanpur. He is among dozens of such Bank Mitras who began sit-in at Jantar Mantar in Delhi on Friday to put pressure on the government to fulfill its promises.
There are 1.26 lakh Bank Mitras in the country. A Bank Mitra works like an agent or contractual employee who brings banking activities to the doorsteps of unbanked people.
Under the PMJDY scheme, a total of 28.76 crore accounts have been opened by 31st May 2017. And Bank Mitras, associated with 27 nationalized banks, have played key role in it.
Their problem is not just promised salary which is yet to come, but their commissions have also been slashed over time.
“We had started working as Bank Mitra in 2010. At that time, we were promised Rs 35/- for each account opening but now we are getting Rs 5/- for each account. Our commission has been decreasing regularly,” said Rakesh Vajpayee, president of All India BC Bankers Mahasangh.
“We are not getting the salary as promised by PM Narendra Modi. We opened a great number of Jan-Dhan accounts. Despite his appreciation for the work done by Bank Mitras, we are not getting what we should,” he said and claimed around 3 lac workers are affected.
He says he and his colleagues think their future would be dark particularly because of the big push by government for cashless economy.
“Since the cashless economy is being pushed by the government, we see our future dark. We won’t be able to be continued. We were told from the banks that after some experience we would be permanent but nothing has been done” he added.
Vajpayee also said there is much insecurity in their jobs as banks don’t provide them security.
“We feel insecurity while transferring money as banks don’t provide us any security. Some Bank Mitras were also killed and looted while doing their jobs,” he claimed.
They have also alleged that an honorarium of Rs 2000/- fixed for village business is also not being given to several workers.
“Our minimum salary should be fixed, all Bank Mitras should be made permanent and extended an insurance cover as their job is risky,” Shankhdar demanded.
In a letter to Prime Minister Modi, the Bank Mitras have urged him to look into all these matters.
