Bank Employees Federation of India (BEFI) is a bank trade union consisting of employees of commercial banks, Reserve Bank of India,

NABARD, regional rural banks and co-operative banks. The federation espouses the causes concerning service conditions of bank employees, development of the banking industry, defense of public sector banking in India and exemplary service to customers including the marginal and neglected. It fights for the betterment of the working class as a whole, and for economic and political independence of India in an age of globalization. BEFI is not affiliated with any Central Trade Union of the country, but it has fraternal relations with Centre of India Trade Unions [CITU]. CITU is the Trade Union front of Communist Party of India (Marxist). BEFI has strong presence in India in provinces like Assam, Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Kerala, Orissa, Tripura, West Bangal etc. Among the Nationalised Bank employees, BEFI is the second largest organisation. In Regional Rural Banks BEFI affiliates represent the majority workforce. Indian Bank Employees Association, an affiliate of Bank Employees Federation of India is running a school (INDIAN BANK EMPLOYEES ASSOCIATION(TAMILNADU) HIGH SCHOOL) at kurichi village near Pattukottai in Thanjavur district, Tamilnadu. This school was established in the year 2002 and in just 8 years of its existence, the school has won many accolades including the honour of a science project done by the students being selected for the prestigious National Children's Science Congress.

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Trade unions have called for a nation-wide strike against price rise, privatisation of public sector undertakings, withdrawal of new pension scheme and a host of other issues on Tuesday. The all-India strike is being supported by eight major trade unions. The major demands of the trade unions include rehabilitation of the workers who lost their jobs due to the economic recession and for Rs 50,000 crore for an unorganised workers' social security fund. The government has only allocated Rs 1,000 crore for 40 crore unorganised workers in the country. The trade unions which have called the strike include Congress-affiliated Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC) Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M)-affiliated Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) and the Hind Mazdoor Sabha (HMS). The Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, which is close to the Bharatiya Janata Party has not yet revealed its position.

Banking operations are expected to be paralysed across the country with the All-India Bank Employees Association also joining the strike to protest against the grant of licences to private banks. Nearly 10 lakh employees from 27 public sector banks, 18 foreign banks, 26 private banks, 82 regional rural banks and 1,721 cooperative banks will participate in the strike, an AllIndia Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) statement issued in Mumbai on Sunday said. AIBEA has opposed FDI in private sector banks and demanded the expansion of the public sector banks' network from 40,000 branches to 1,00,000 across the country. "Expansion of public sector banks network is necessary for reaching out to the poorest of the poor for making the financial inclusion model of the RBI a success," AIBEA Secretary Vishwas Utagi said. Besides bankers, nearly 44 crore employees, including those from the organised and unorganised sectors and industries, will participate in the strike, he said. Various state governments have instructed police and civli authorities to be on high alert and take stringent action against anyone trying to break law and order and public peace during the strike. (For updates you can share with your friends, follow IBNLive on Facebook, Twitter andGoogle+)

Comrade Naresh Paul

Bank Employees of our country do not to be told who comrade Naresh Paul was, for, they irrespective of their organizational allegiance looked upon him as their friend, philosopher and guide - the pioneer who was the inspiration behind the bank employees' movement. Born on 1st March 1918 and a graduate in academic qualification, Naresh Paul joined the services of Central Bank of India in 1941 but lost his job in 1949 for leading a strike struggle by the nascent trade union there. From then onward, instead of trying to get back his job or to be employed elsewhere, he spent his entire life as a bachelor devoted to the task of building up a militant all India union of the bank employees. It was through his efforts that the first national level organization of the bank employees, All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA), came into being. Always unmindful of what position he held in the organnization, Com. Naresh Paul's only thought was how best he could serve the interest of employees and how bank employees movement could be developed into a part and parcel of the working class movement. The very simply clad Comrade Naresh Paul passed away on 30th October 2000, but his name still draws the same regard and respect from one and all. We are particularly proud of the fact that he was the founder President of Bank Employees Federation of India (BEFI). Comrade Nareh Paul, before he passed away, had ten years of experience with the neo-liberal globalization policy of the Government of India and he realized that for an effective resistance to the adverse impact of that policy, there was no

alternative before the bank employees other than united movement by all the unions particularly against job eliminating schemes and on the demand for adequate recruitment in all the banks. His wishes have still remained to be pursued by the present generation of bank employees to whom he entrusted the task. It is our responsibility to fullfil the unfinished tasks he left behind and thus pay him our respectful homage.

ABOUT BANK EMPLOYEES FEDERATION OF INIDA Bank Employees Federation of India, which was founded in 1982, is a Trade Union organization of Indian Banking Industry, comprising of 100,000 employees of commercial banks, Reserve Bank of India, NABARD, regional rural banks and co-operative banks. The federation espouses the causes concerning service conditions of bank employees, development of the banking industry, defense of public sector banking in India and exemplary service to customers including the marginal and neglected. It fights for the betterment of the working class as a whole, and for economic and political independence of India in an age of globalization. BEFI is not affiliated with any political party, but the leadership has close ties with CIT

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