Dr Baburam Bhattarai, vice chairman of UCPN (Maoist), told Republica that the party was in no mood to find solutions to the problems on part by part basis. [break]
"We do understand the problems being faced by the banking sector and we believe finding an amicable solution to the ongoing political problem is the best option to resolve all the problems," he added.
The banking sector on Tuesday had urged the Maoist leadership to allow them conduct limited-hour banking transactions, similar to the daily two-hour relaxation given to traders during the strike.
Bankers told Republica that the operation hours of the banks have slightly improved as the operations hours of urban-centric banks has lengthened compared to what was seen on Tuesday. "I am in a position to say that banking operation has improved slightly on Wednesday," said Sashin Joshi, president of Nepal Bankers´ Association.
Joshi further said that operation of Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) located within the premises of the banks has been slightly better than the previous days. Bank officials were frank to accept that most of the offsite ATMs were not in operation as they were unable to transport cash required to the cash dispensing machines.
Rajan Singh Bandari, CEO of Citizens Bank, echoed similar views and added that none of the clients, who managed to come to the banks for normal services, has been deprived from banking services. "Yes, we do accept that services might not be as prompt as they used to be due mainly to lack of staffs," he said.
Bankers say that realization of check deposits was one of the normal banking activities that have been badly affected by the ongoing strike as the activities concerned with check clearing at the Nepal Rastra Bank is virtually stagnant. Similarly, almost all the banks have closed their evening banking services mainly due to lack of security.
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