"Our main demand is to stop unilateral implementation of the A.K. Khandelwal committee recommendations, which led to freezing recruitments and denial of promotions to thousands of employees and officers at various cadres. The percentage of vacancies in state-run banks has increased to 40 percent from 30 percent over the last 15 years," Ravindra asserted.

The government constituted committee on human resources (HR) issues of state-run banks submitted its report June 24, 2010 with 105 recommendations on manpower and recruitment planning, training, posting, promotion, wages, services conditions and welfare. Of them, the banks have implemented only 56 with the remaining 49 requiring further deliberations with employees and officers.

Closure of about 2,500 branches of state-run and private banks across the state impacted business severely as millions of customers could not withdraw or deposit cash and cheques and transact other instruments, including clearing.

Cash withdrawal through automatic teller machines (ATMs) by retail customers, however, was not affected as banks deposited enough notes in their respective ATMs by late Tuesday.

With the two-day strike continuing Thursday, banks fear that their ATMs would run out of cash by late Wednesday as employees assigned to re-fill the machines were also abstaining from work.