The country’s largest public sector bank, State Bank of India (SBI), will remain closed from today – May 23 to May 28. During these six days, customers will not be able to visit bank branches to transact money, get checks cleared, or do any other important banking related work, as bank branches will remain closed due to festivals and strikes.
Money can be withdrawn from ATM in emergency
It is worth noting that during these six days of bank closure, customers do not need to worry about getting cash, as they will be able to withdraw money from ATMs. Apart from this, UPI transaction services will also remain operational. Customers can also transact through the bank’s YONO mobile app and its online banking portal. Customer service points will also be available.
Due to six days bank closure
Today is the fourth Saturday of the month, which is an official holiday for the State Bank. There will be a weekly holiday tomorrow, Sunday, 24th May. SBI employees’ union will go on nationwide strike on Monday and Tuesday – May 25 and 26. Wednesday and Thursday – May 27 and 28 – will be government holidays in many states due to Bakri Eid (Eid-ul-Azha). As a result, due to the coincidence of the festival of Bakri Eid and the strike of bank employees, SBI branches will remain closed for six consecutive days on May 25-26. **Check the complete list of holidays here.** In the next ten days, SBI branches will remain closed for six consecutive days. The bank will remain closed continuously from Saturday, May 23 to Thursday, May 28. After this long six-day closure, SBI branches will start functioning normally again on Friday, May 29, 2026. The full schedule of bank closures is as follows: May 23: Fourth Saturday of the month (official holiday); 24 May: Sunday (weekly holiday).
Why are bank employees going on a two-day strike?
Actually, All India State Bank of India Staff Federation (AISBISF) has announced a two-day strike. The reason behind this is the pending demands of the bank employees. Especially for these demands, a nationwide strike has been announced on 25th and 26th May. The bank union alleges that the bank management is implementing many decisions related to the employees without asking or consulting them, which has caused huge dissatisfaction among the employees.
16 main demands of bank employees
It is worth noting that the bank employees’ union has placed 16 main demands before the bank management. One of these demands is related to new recruitment, because support staff and messengers have not been recruited for the last several years. Citing the recent robbery incident in Surat branch, a demand has also been made to increase the number of security guards in banks. Apart from this, the employees are also demanding freedom to change fund managers and removal of pay disparity under the National Pension System (NPS).
