Will someone ask for our data too? Almost daily, we receive messages saying so and so staff of that so and so branch died. We are not allowed to mourn, we cannot mourn because we have to update your passbook, deposit your cash, give withdrawal, sanction loans, run government schemes, pass cheques and the like. Even if we try to takeout a minute to cope up with the shock, you will be there shouting “inka aisa hi hai” (These people work and function like this only) “mera itna urgent kaam hai” (my work is urgent) “itna kya der lagta hai” (why are you taking so much time?).
We have to be there for you even if the person who used to sit next to us is just gone. No goodbyes, no last rituals. There are many who are 1000 of kms away from their family. When they fall sick, their family is not near them to pamper, to take care, to give ghar ka khana (home-cooked food), to even be there during their last times. There are staff members who die without seeing their family, who have been away from home for the past 8-9 months due to the situation. There are staff members who die because they didn’t get a leave.
We go through this mental trauma daily. Everyday, we see our own staff members testing positive, struggling to get beds, struggling to find a hospital for family, yet we make sure that banking services don’t get disturbed.
Will we be counted in your data? Will we be remembered as the frontline heroes who were there even when the country was in lockdown? Will we atleast be respected as bankers? Or just treated as humans with emotions?
A Banker