Beginning June 1, bank branches in Telangana will have 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. as their business hours or the time when public is permitted to access services through such facilities.
Announcing the new schedule, following a meeting on Monday, the State Level Bankers’ Committee (SLBC) said besides adhering to the business hours, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., the branches will need to close by 4 p.m.
The change, from the 8 a.m. to 12 noon working hours that the banks adopted following the State government-announced lockdown about a fortnight ago, comes in the backdrop of a relaxation in the lockdown, daily, from 6 a.m. to 1 p.m. The new bank timing will be in force, till the lockdown ends on June 9. “If required, the same would be reviewed for further extension,” SLBC Convenor and SBI General Manager Krishan Sharma said.
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The decision, on the new timing, is to ensure that the “general population of Telangana is not put to any inconvenience and can carry out their banking transactions with ease during [the] lockdown period,” he said.
As regards deploying staff on a rotational basis, something many banks had resorted to amid the second wave of the pandemic, the SLBC communication said “the respective controllers/State heads of banks will take a decision on deployment of staff on roster basis or otherwise at branches and administrative offices.”
“We reiterate that the Controllers may exercise discretion in consultation with District Administrations and LDMs for any unforeseen situations to safeguard the health of general public and more of bank staff,” the communication said.
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The bank timings are expected to have no impact on the operations of ATMs. “The services of ATMs will be available as usual,” he said in a release.
Incidentally, the SLBC had last month decided on 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. as business hours of the bank branches, in the backdrop of a sharp increase in the number COVID-19 positive cases, but could not proceed for want of approval from the State government.