Viral Gazette Declaring Every Saturday a Holiday for PSU Banks Is Fake: PIB Fact Check

The Press Information Bureau's Fact Check unit has debunked a purported government gazette circulating on social media that claims the Centre has declared every Saturday a public holiday for all public sector banks, including the State Bank of India.

In a post on X, PIB Fact Check said the document being shared online is fake and was not issued by the Finance Ministry's Department of Financial Services.

The fact-checking agency clarified that no government notification has been issued declaring every Saturday a public holiday for public sector banks.

“A Gazette circulating on social media, purportedly issued by the Ministry of Finance (Department of Financial Services), claims that the Central Government has declared every Saturday a public holiday for all Public Sector Banks, including SBI. The document being circulated is fake,” PIB Fact Check said.

The clarification followed the widespread circulation of the purported notification, which claimed that all public sector banks would remain closed on Saturdays following a decision by the Central government.

PIB Fact Check urged people to exercise caution when encountering government-related documents online and to verify such claims through official sources before sharing them.

“No such notification has been issued by Finance Ministry declaring every Saturday as public holiday for public sector banks,” the agency said.

It also asked citizens to report suspicious content concerning the Central government to PIB Fact Check to help counter the spread of misinformation.

The clarification comes days after the United Forum of Bank Unions deferred a proposed three-day nationwide bank strike following discussions with the Indian Banks' Association.

According to the bank union, representatives of the IBA and UFBU held a meeting on Sunday, after which both sides agreed to defer the planned nationwide strike.