Veterans are justified in demanding OROP to correct the reduction in pensions since 3rd Pay Commission 1973 and even after independence

1. A
Discussion
18 September 2015
School of Social Sciences
IGNOU, New Delhi
Col Rajive Kohli, PhD
kohli9r@gmail.com

3. “The Mauryan soldier does not enrich the Royal treasuries nor fills the Royal
granaries. He does not carry out trade and commerce nor produce scholars…
He does not build roads and ramparts nor dig wells and reservoirs. He does
not do any of this directly.
“The soldier only and merely ensures that the tax, tribute and revenue
collectors travel forth and return safely; that the farmer tills, harvests, stores
and markets his produce unafraid ….. that the tutor and the priest teach and
preach in peace…
“Pataliputra reposes each night in peaceful comfort, O King, secure in
the belief that the distant borders of Magadha are inviolate and the interiors
are safe and secure, thanks only to the Mauryan Army standing vigil with
naked swords and eyes peeled for action, day and night, in weather fair and
foul, all eight praharas (round the clock), quite unmindful of personal
discomfort and hardship, all through the year, year after year.
Kautilya discretely but firmly reminded the
king that his safety and security as well as of
his empire depend on the trust and sacrifice
of his soldiers.

4. “While the citizenry of the State contributes to see that
the State prospers and flourishes, the soldier guarantees it
continues to EXIST as a State! To this man, O Rajadhiraja,
you owe a debt: please, therefore, see to it, on your own,
that the soldier continuously gets his dues in every form
and respect, be they his needs or his wants, for he is not
likely to ask for them himself.”
Then: “The day the soldier has to demand his dues
will be a sad day for Magadha for then, on that day, you will
have lost all moral sanction to be King!”

5. SIGNIFICANCE of PENSION
 The pensioner would be able to live:
(i) Free from want, with decency, independence and SELF
RESPECT and
(ii) At a standard equivalent at the pre-retirement level.
Hon’ble Supreme Court on Pension
 Pension is a RIGHT; not a bounty or gratuitous payment.
 The payment of pension does not depend upon the
discretion of the Government but is governed by the rules and a
government servant coming within those rules is entitled to
claim pension

6.  The pension payable to a government employee is
earned by rendering long and efficient service and
therefore can be said to be a deferred portion of the
compensation for service rendered
 Pension also has a broader significance in that it is
a social-welfare measure rendering socio-economic
justice by providing economic security in old age to
those who toiled ceaselessly in the hey-day of their life
Pension as a retirement benefit is in consonance with
and in furtherance of the goals of the Constitution.
The goals for which pension is paid themselves give a
fillip and push to the policy of setting up a welfare
state.

7. Why military pensions are different
Until 1973, officers drew 50% of their last drawn salary as pension every month and jawans/junior
commissioned officers drew 70%. But this changed after the Third Pay Commission’s suggestions
came in that year: military pensions were reduced and aligned with civilian pensions.
Many of those who resist One Rank One Pension argue that, given the alignment in military and
civilian pensions, the scheme for the military may prompt similar calls from others. Their argument
is, however, misplaced. Notwithstanding the pensions, the military is distinct from other
government services.
To start with, armed forces personnel do not get to serve as long as those in the civil services. While
the retirement age for civil servants is 60 years, 85% soldiers are compulsorily retired between 35
and 37 years of age and another 12% to 13% soldiers between 40 and 54 years.
Further, civil servants are protected under Section 47 of the Disability Act and cannot be discharged
by the government on account of disability until they reach the retirement age. This section doesn’t
apply to the defence forces and they can be discharged anytime on account of disability.
Forgo constitutional rights; hard conditions, subject to harsh laws

10. Some Facts
The Indian Armed Forces are voluntary forces,no conscription.
Join as jawans or officers for a variety of reasons and, among them, is the security
of a job.
Job reasonably secure but not or the entire working life.
85% retire by the age of 38 years and another 10 per cent retire by the age of 46
years. No guarantee of a post-retirement job.
Retirement at an early age is good and necessary to keep the forces young and
fighting fit.
Hence the case for an honourable pension.
Other reason to make pension attractive to attract new volunteers.
Attrition rates and vacancy levels alarmingly high
Armed Forces to remain voluntary forces, recruitment must remain robust.
The promise of an honourable pension is an important factor in recruitment.
OROP is an honourable pension.

11. Chronology

12. 1947 to 50s
• Initially bulk of IAS, IPS and defence officers used to retire as deputy
secretary, SSP or Maj/ Lt Col, as it should be in a service based on
meritocracy. Look at the spectacle now in the civil services wherein
merit has been given the go by and every one who gets in just
keeps getting promoted by time scale, without any filtering. Only
the armed forces still select only the best in the available pool of
officers, JCOs and Jawans. Governance in the country is not to be
proud of while, the Services earn a good name be it in peace or
war. (they are despised by peers in other services, from the same
stock but the results are quite different)
• 1950: special commission was setup to fix the salaries of the
Services. Then, while the Service officers were given an increment
of Rs 50 every two years, the civilians fixed Rs 25 pa for
themselves. Thus taking home Rs 300 extra every alternate years.
The soldiers who had just snatched J&K back from Pakistan were
taken for a ride because they trusted the government to look after
them.
• In early 1950s India sent first peace keeping contingent to Gaza and
thereafter many more and earned kudos for the country. No one
knows that the soldier gets only a third of the daily allowance that
the UNO pays for each soldier. The government pockets most of it
and earns out of the sweat and blood the soldier sheds.

13. 1960 -70
• 1965 Indo-Pak war India annexed more territory and cause more casualties on the enemy and did great
damage to its war making ability. But how were the soldiers rewarded? The IAS and IPS upgraded
themselves in precedence and pay and in 1970 all government services were given a raise on the sly. We
got it in 1971/72, when we learned about it. While a soldier got Rs 50 to 150 as high altitude allowance
while living in a bunker at 13,000 to 15,000ft above msl the civil servant living in a bungalow with family,
in Towang or Bomdila collected 25% of his pay as "Inner Line Allowance".
• In 1971 the armed forces gave a gift to the country by splitting Pakistan into two countries, and captured
over 90,000 POWs. The 3rd CPC made a major democratic move in 1973! JCOs & OR getting 70% and
officers 50% as pension were brought on par with the civil servants who had been drawing 33% as
pension. Once again they benefited themselves without any equivalent improvement for the soldiers.
• In 1972 soon after the war was over the state governments issued letters that Deputy Commissioner will
henceforth be senior to Brigadiers and Chief Secretaries will be senior in their own states to Army
Commanders, who were responsible for law and order and disaster relief in 4 to 6 states. So the Annual
civil- military conferences which were held at Army Command HQ since decades became a joke, because
if one CS did not attend no one else came!
• 1973: MOD terminates OROP the basis for deciding pension of soldiers ‘which had been in
vogue for 26 years since independence’ through an ex parte administrative order. Armed Forces
pensions before 1973 because of early retirement, conditions of military service, were about 70
percent of the pay of rank at which they retired. In 1973, the pension of civilian government
servant was increased from 33 percent to 50 percent, and that of armed forces personnel, who
have far shorter careers, and more challenging service conditions, was decreased from 70
percent to 50 percent of last pay drawn.

14. • 1980s: The 4th CPC was a disaster as Maj AK Dhanapalan found out that the
bureaucracy has cunningly taken the rank pay out of the pay and called it a
gift to the officers. It took over a two decades to rectify it through the orders
of the Supreme Court and another half a decade to implement it. [ The case
was FINALLY resolved in the SC in 2012 - for pay & allowances applicable from
Jan 1986 !! 26 YEARS THERAFTER !! In short, service officers were SHORT
CHANGED by the BABUS.
• 49 anomalies were put up by the Services after the 5th CPC. A committee
was formed under the defence secretary who ruminated over them for 4
years and produced a zero. While the demands of the civil servants were
agreed to because they had threatened a strike.
• 1991: OROP is considered by Sharad Pawar. In 1992, the Government grants a
'one time increase', instead of OROP.
• 1997: 5 CPC. .Government approves 5 CPC recommendation of full parity
between pre and post 1/1/1986 pensioners and a modified parity between
pre and post 1/1/1996 to all pensioners including soldiers, but ignores OROP.
Government decision to accept 5 CPC depress military pensions, including
that of General Officers who, in an precedent action, file a lawsuit against the
Government. After protracted litigation, strongly contested by the UPA
Government, the Supreme Court of India rules in favor of the litigants.

15. • 23 November 2002: Sonia Gandhi at Chandigarh declares that she and her
party support grant of OROP. OROP is included in the Party’s election
Manifesto.
• in 2003, a Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence recommended
it, and said most categorically that it was “a debt” the Indian Republic had
to discharge, a debt that the Union Government must honour and pay.
• 2006: 6th CPC submit report. Its stand on ‘One Rank One Pension' is
ambivalent. 6CPC recommends that “extant provisions may
continue“. The acceptance of the 6 CPC by the government provokes
widespread dismay amongst ex-servicemen. For the first time Ex-
servicemen engage in public protest and threaten hunger strikes. “The
Sixth Pay Commission has done inestimable damage to civil-military
relations”, and giving vent to the general mood says, “The protest rallies
are actually a manifestation of the seething anger which many veterans
carry as baggage accumulated during service. We all seem to have very
bitter memories of the shoddy treatment meted out to us by civil
servants.
• The 6 CPC recommended that in future posts in the "CPOs/defence civilian
organisations" should be filled by lateral transfer of Armed Forces
personnel, including Short Service Commissioned Officers, after they
complete their term of military service

16. • 2008: OROP protest gained momentum following Government decision to [a]
disregard OROP; [b] grant time bound higher pay grades and ranks to civilian and
Police officers, who wears army badges of rank, at fixed intervals, independent of
the job requirement, or span of responsibilities; [c] sanction assured automatic
pay promotions, to all officers of All India Services, and the police, under what has
been called the "Non-Functional Up-gradation" (NFU), and [d] terminate
"traditional pay parity between the commissioned officers and the AIS“. Public
protest by armed Forces veterans escalate.
• 16 December 2008: Ex-servicemen begin a relay fast at Jantar Mantar. The
peaceful protest is largely ignored by the government. Veteran decide to
surrender of their war medals, including war and gallantry medals.
• 8 February 2009: ESM march to the Rastrapati Bhavan to meet and
surrendered their medals to the President and Supreme Commander of the
Armed Forces, who refuses to meet with the ESM. Instead ESM are met by by
junior official in the president's secretariat who collects the medals. The
presidential slight and “studied disrespect" fuels ESM grievance.

17. NON FUNCTIONAL FINANCIAL
UPGRADATION(NFFU)
 6TH CENTRAL PAY COMMISSION ON REQUEST OF ALL
GROUP ‘A’ SERVICES (IAS, IFS, IPS, IRS ETC)
RECOMMENDED NFFU TO OVERCOME SO CALLED
STEEP STAGNATION
 FOR IAS STAGNATION MEANS 100% IAS OFFICERS
BECOMES JT SECY (MAJ GEN) ONLY AT 19 YEARS
SERVICE (WHERE AS ONLY 0.8% OFFICERS BECOME
MAJ GEN AT 30 YEARS SERVICE)
 GETTING PROMOTION AS JT SECY AT 19 YEARS
SERVICE IS UNBEARABLE AND IS REQUIRED TO BE
OVER COME BY NFFU
 IF IAS OFFICER OF A BATCH BECOMES A JOINT SECY

18. DISPARITY DUE TO NFU
14 Yrs
LT GEN
MAJ GEN
COL
MAJ
BRIG
IAS
HAG SCALE
GP ₹ 10,000
GP ₹ 8,900
GP ₹ 8,700
GP ₹ 6600
LT COL GP ₹ 8,000
DIR
JS
AS
GP ‘A’ , BRO &
MES
ARMED FORCES
26 Yrs
14 Yrs
20 Yrs
30 Yrs
14 Yrs
22 Yrs
32 Yrs
16 Yrs
16 Yrs22 Yrs
36 Yrs0.2 %
32 Yrs0.4 %
26 Yrs3 %
15 Yrs
8.7 %

19. 24 September 2012: UPA government announces that it has approved OROP. It says it
has set aside Rs 2,300 crore has been set aside for the OROP scheme. However, there
are no plans to implement OROP, and it remains un-implemented.

20. • On 27 February 2014: A K Antony, Defence Minister in UPA Government, says that UPA will
implement OROP by 1 April 2014.
• 10 July 2014: Arun Jaitley, FM and RM, in his maiden Budget Speech in parliament, says, "We
reaffirm our commitment to our brave soldiers. A policy of OROP has been adopted by the
Government to address the pension disparities. We propose to set aside a further sum
of Rs 1,000 crore to meet this year’s requirement"
• 2014: periodic homilies; part-time RM Arun Jaitley to delegation of veterans stunned by the
encounter moralised and hectored them that they should reduce their expectations of OROP.
RM Parrikar made a bizarre statement that only “80 per cent of OROP will be paid… because
there is never 100 per cent in everything”.
• 17 Feb 2015: RM Parrikar approves proposal for implementation of OROP, estimated to
cost Rs 8600 crores. The proposal is forwarded by the MOD, to MoF on 17 Mar 2015.
13 Sep 2013 Rewari: Modi
promised OROP within 100
days, once his government was
formed!

21. • 22 June 2015: Ex-servicemen announce intent to boycott golden jubilee events to mark
the 1965 war with Pakistan, including felicitation of 1965 War Veterans. Ex-Servicemen
also announce intent to boycott all government functions including at-home, and the
Ex-Servicemen contingent at the Republic Day Parade. Veteran of various battles say
"We don't wish to be treated as showpieces, to be rolled out for ceremonies and
discarded thereafter.“
• 6 July 2015: Anna Hazare, veteran of 1965 war, wrote to PM "We have to take care of
our soldiers and farmers. Making hollow announcements for their welfare and actually
implementing them are different things”
• 11 July 2015: 5 retired Lieutenant Generals, four Major Generals and one Air
Marshall of the Indian Air Force, joined the protest at JM.
• 21 July 2015: Rao Inderjit Singh, Minister of State for Defence, in a written reply to a
question in Rajya Sabha, confirmed "principle of OROP for the armed forces has been
accepted". In response to a question he denied that OROP is under consideration for
paramilitary forces.
• 26 July 2015: Kargil vijay divas run in Delhi.
PM Narendra Modi promised OROP once again

22. • 23 Aug 2015: 5000 ESMs carried out a candlelight march to Amar Jawan Jyoti from their
protest site, Jantar Mantar.
A Joint Commissioner of Police was sent to apologise.
10 former Chiefs of the Armed Forces of India (7 Former chief of Indian Army staff, 2 Chiefs
of Air Staff, and 1 Chief of Naval Staff), in a unprecedented joint open letter urged Narendra
Modi, the Prime Minister, to order an inquiry into the brutal police action by Delhi Police
against the peaceful gathering of veterans in Jantar Mantar, on Independence Day eve and to
resolve the OROP issue expeditious.

23. SOME DATA
• NUMBER OF PENSIONERS - 24 LAKHS
FROM THE ARMED FORCES + WIDOWS
• PENSION BUDGET - Rs 40,000
OF DEFENCE PERSONNEL CRORES

24. The Legal Position
In 1983, the Supreme Court had ruled in the case of DS Nakra and others vs Union of India that
“pension is not a bounty nor a matter of grace depending upon the sweet will of the employer. It is
not an ex-gratia payment, but a payment for past services rendered."
The apex court spoke again on this issue in the case of Union of India & Maj Gen SPS Vains & Others
in 2009. It ruled then that no defence personnel senior in rank could get a lower pension than his
junior irrespective of the date of retirement, and that similarly placed officers of the same rank
should be given the same pension irrespective of the date of retirement.
On February 17 this year, the court, while hearing a contempt petition filed by Maj Gen (Retd) SPS
Vains, directed the Centre to implement its six-year-old verdict and follow the OROP principle for
retired armed forces personnel. It reminded the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government that the
party had promised to do so in the run-up to last year’s Lok Sabha elections.
The bench, comprising Justices TS Thakur and AK Goel, warned the government of contempt if it
failed to abide by the order within three months. “We make it clear that no further time will be
granted for the purpose of [the] implementation of the judgement,” it told additional solicitor
general Pinky Anand.

25. COMMENTS OF HON’BLE SUPREME COURT ON
TREATMENT GIVEN BY GOVT OF INDIA TO THE
DEFENCE SERVICES PERSONNEL
CIVILAPPEAL NO 4474 OF 2005 BETWEEN CAPT CS SIDHU Vs
UNION OF INDIA IN THE DIVISION BENCH COMPRISING OF
HON’BLE JUSTICE MARKANDEY KATJU
HON’BLE JUSTICE A.K. PATNAIK
Before parting with this case, we regret to say that the Army
officers and Army men in our country are being treated in a
shabby manner by the government. In this case, the
respondent, who was posted at a high altitude field area and
met with an accident during discharge of his duties, was
granted a meager pension as stated in Annexure-P3 to this
appeal. This is a pittance (about Rs. 1000/- per month plus
D.A.).

26. If this is the manner in which the Army
personnel are treated, it can only be said that it is
extremely unfortunate. The Army personnel are
bravely defending the country even at the cost of
their lives and we feel that they should be treated
in a better and more humane manner by the
Governmental authorities, particularly, in
respect of their emoluments, pension and other
benefits

27. ALLOCATION FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR
2014-15
• Extracts of Vote on Account speech by Finance
Minister
“I am happy to announce that Govt has
accepted the principle of OROP for the Defence
Forces. This decision will be implemented
prospectively from the FY 2014-15.The requirement
for 2014-15 is estimated at Rs 500 Crores and as an
earnest of the UPA Govt commitment, I propose to
transfer a sum of Rs 500 Crores to the Defence
Pensioner Account in the current FY”.

28. UNION BUDGET : PENSIONs
Total Pension Allocation FY 2015-16 88000 Cr
Breakdown
Armed Forces 54500 Cr
Armed Forces 33000 Cr
Def Civ 22500 Cr
All India Services 88000 - 54500 = 33500 Cr
Categorizing
Those who "Superannuate" - AIS & Def Civ 100%
Armed Force superannuation (Gens n Lt Gens) 0.0014% (93/63200)
Pension Demands
Armed Forces 33000 Cr i.e. 37.5%
AIS + Def Civ 33500 + 22500 = 56000 Cr i.e. 62.5%
Per Capita Pension
Armed Forces 33000 Cr / 25.0 lac = 1,32,000:00 / year
Def Civ 22500 Cr / 4.0 lac = 5.63,000:00 / year
AIS 33500 Cr / ????
AIS + Def Civ 56000 Cr / Strength = Estimated to be over 4-5,00,000 / year
Ratios of Serving : Pensioners
Armed Forces 1 : 1.7
AIS n Def Civ 0.53 : 1
No one in his right frame of mind should ever question this
SIMPLE
If the Govt has accepted that the Armed Forces have got be "Fighting Fit”. The Govt needs to
answer WHY has 50% of retirees NOT been inducted into PMS, IPS, State Police etc

30. What is orop? On 26 February 2014, the Ministry of Defence defined OROP and
the following definition was communicated to the Chiefs of the three Services:
“OROP implies that uniform pension be paid to the Armed Forces personnel
retiring in the same rank with the same length of service irrespective of their date
of retirement and any future enhancement in the rates of pension to be
automatically passed on to the past pensioners. This implies bridging the gap
between the rate of pension of the current pensioners and the past pensioners,
and also future enhancements in the rate of pension to be automatically passed on
to the past pensioners.”

31. PRINCIPLE : OROP
• Two military personnel in same rank and equal
length of service should get same pension
irrespective of date of retirement.
• Any future enhancement in the rates of pension
be automatically passed on to the past pensioners.

32. On 5 September 2015, the Defence Minister Manohar
Parrikar announced that the government has accepted the
concept of OROP and will implement it. In a statement
issued by Defence Minister, he said "Despite huge financial
burden, the government has taken a decision to implement
the One Rank One Pension. Benefit of OROP will be given
with effect from July 1, 2014, a date immediately after the
present government assumed office". The government has
accepted all the demands of veterans except annual revision
of Pension. The government has decided to revise the
pension after every five years. Also, OROP arrears are to be
paid in four half-yearly instalments; all widows, including war
widows, to be paid arrears in one instalment. To begin with,
OROP would be fixed on the basis of calendar year 2013.
Pension will be re-fixed for all pensioners retiring in the same
rank and same length of service

33. Government's Offer What veterans want
Effective from July 1, 2014 April 1, 2014
OROP will be average of minimum
and maximum pension scale in 2013
Base for pension should be
maximum of the pension scale in
2013
Revision every 5 years One or two years
One-member judicial commission to
submit report in six months
Five-member team under Defense
Minister to submit report in one
month
05 sep 2015
RM Manohar Parrikar on Saturday announced the implementation of the long
delayed One Rank One Pension (OROP) for ex-servicemen.

35. Reject the objections
The sticking points are entirely due to bureaucratic back-pedalling and the inability of the
Government to overrule the objections. The promise must prevail over the objections,
even if some of them appear valid. The promise was to implement OROP from 1 April
2014, and not 1 July 2014. The promise was same pension to personnel retiring in the
same rank with the same length of service, and not grant of same pension by looking into
the cause of retirement.
The promise was that future enhancements in the rate of pension will be automatically
passed on to the past pensioners, and not that the adjustment will be made every five
years.
OROP is indeed a defined benefit pension and different from the National Pension System
(NPS) which is a contributory pension scheme. A person who has a short working life in
the Armed Services cannot contribute enough during that period to earn an honourable
pension. Hence OROP.
OROP HAS BEEN GRANTED! WHY AM I SAD?
First, some facts for the uninitiated:-
• As per the Supreme Court, Pension is not ‘charity’ but ‘deferred payment for services rendered’.
• The matter of OROP was studied by the Koshyari Committee of the Parliament in 2011. The Committee w
Armed Forces were in the receipt of OROP from 1947 to 1973. (Para 10.2 of the Report).
Armed Forces cannot be equated to Civilians: They retire much earlier and have totally different condition
Till 1973 Armed Forces had a separate Pay Commission. Bringing them at par with the Civilian Employees
• Till 1973, Armed Forces got 70% of last pay drawn as pension while civilian employees got only 30%. Aft
• In 2008 officers of Civil Services were granted NFU (Non-functional upgrade). Thus they all draw much h

36. Etched onto the wall of a sentry box in Gibraltar
is an unsigned indictment from an unknown
soldier. You imagine him there many wars ago,
keeping watch and weighing his prospects for a
normal life.
God and the soldier, all men adore
In time of danger and not before.
When the danger is passed and all things righted,
God is forgotten, and the soldier slighted.