Chandigarh , May 8
Former president of the District Congress Committee, Ludhiana (Urban), Pawan Dewan, on Friday launched a scathing attack on the Punjab government over its decision to depute banking staff for census-related duties, terming the move “administratively reckless and economically disastrous.” He warned that the diversion of already overburdened bank employees for SIR training and survey assignments had thrown both industry and public services into chaos across the state.
In a statement issued here today, Dewan, who is also the former Chairman of the Punjab Large Industrial Development Board, said Punjab’s fragile industrial economy was being pushed towards deeper distress as district administrations had diverted banking personnel en masse, severely disrupting routine banking operations and paralysing critical financial services.
Dewan said that the banks, already grappling with acute manpower shortages, were now staring at an unprecedented operational crisis. “The government’s ill-conceived decision has crippled day-to-day banking functions. Essential services such as cash deposits, cheque clearances, account servicing, documentation and loan processing are suffering delays, choking the flow of commerce and severely affecting financial activity across Punjab,” he said.
Dewan cautioned that Punjab’s industrial sector, which was already battling economic slowdown, rising costs and shrinking liquidity, could face a far more severe blow if the diversion of banking staff continued. “Factories, traders and small businesses depend heavily on smooth banking operations for survival. If employees continue to be siphoned off for survey duties, the banking system itself could face partial collapse under crippling manpower shortages,” he warned.
Highlighting the plight of ordinary citizens, Dewan said the government’s decision had unleashed immense hardship on the public. People were being forced to endure queues and delays for even basic banking services such as cash withdrawals, passbook updates, pension disbursements and utility bill payments. “This administrative blunder is not only strangling industry but also inflicting daily misery upon common households,” he remarked.
Demanding immediate corrective action, Dewan urged the Punjab government to withdraw banking staff from census and SIR-related duties without delay and restore them to their core responsibilities. He warned that any further delay would deepen the crisis in industry, disrupt public life further and inflict long-term damage on Punjab’s already strained economy.
