SBI ATMs turn �cash less� as Cash-in-Transit company employees go on strike

Jamshedpur : The ATMs of State Bank of India (SBI) have gone �cash less� across the city after SIS, a leading Cash-in-Transit (CIT) company, stopped providing their services in Jharkhand and Bihar since the past few days.

Sources went on to inform that the SIS has withdrawn its services of loading the cash in protest of their non-payment of dues by the NCR Corporation by which the company (SIS) has been authorized to do the cash loading job in Jharkhand and Bihar.

The strike has hit the customers at large as they are relying on other banks� ATMS to meet their requirements.
�We have only one SBI ATM at Jugsalai and since I have an account with Jugsalai branch I have not been able to withdraw cash. I have no choice but to rely on other banks� ATMS,� said Naresh Seth a resident of Jugsalai. He said that the bank must take immediate steps to deal with the situation.

Another resident of Bistupur said that the SBI ATMs are left with no cash, and she had to withdraw cash by standing in a queue from the bank.

According to information of 260-odd ATMs of different banks across the steel city, 106 belong to SBI.
Meanwhile, SIS assistant manager, Afsar Ali said confirmed that they are not loading cash in the SBI ATMs since the past five days as per the instruction from their headquarters in Patna.

“NCR Corporation has not cleared the dues since October, 2013. As a result we have option but to stop the cash-loading work,” he noted. He said that once the matter is settled they will be back to work.

Sources also informed that the suspension of cash loading work is not limited to Jamshedpur, but ATMs across Bihar and Jharkhand have suffered due to the strike. The company would start functioning only after getting an instruction from their headquarters.

A senior official of SBI confirmed that the cash loading work has been suspended in over 100 ATMs due to no on clearance of dues between NCR Corporation and SIS.

“We are trying to solve the situation by mediating between NCR Corporation, which is our main vendor and the SIS, which is the sub-vendor,” said the official on condition of anonymity.

The SBI official informed that in order to meet the situation they themselves are also loading the cash directly at the ATMs. He said of the seven ATMs, five are located on the premises of the SBI’s main branch in Bistupur, one at the Jugsalai branch and another at the XLRI branch .