ONE RANK ONE PENSION: AN OBLIGATION TO BE FULFILLED

By Gp Capt AG Bewoor
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In democracies, bureaucrats with their political masters run the show, and it matters little to them that the nation's Armed Forces creates conditions to run that show in a secure environment. Democracy means civilian control over Armed Forces, but it is conveniently forgotten that `control' demands including the Armed Forces in the decision matrix on anything that impacts the security of that democracy.

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In India an immature political leadership controlled by extra constitutional power centres, has connived with a self-serving bureaucracy to make irresponsible and unaccountable use of the Armed Forces, and keeping them out of the decision matrix, even when military options are discussed. The Indian fauji has no political ambitions and eschews interference in governance at all levels. Concurrently our intelligence community have created a bogey about a military coup, exacerbating the exclusion of valuable military advice in decisions involving India's security. This is tragic for our young nation, where despite coups all around us, we have a proven apolitical cadre of military personnel.

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The disdain for Indian Armed Forces, consistently demonstrated by the politico-bureaucratic-extra constitutional combine, is translated into negation of a justified demand for One Rank One Pension, (OROP).

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What has this to do with Pensions?

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The Two Truths. The public is ignorant about two vital aspects. First the canard perpetrated by civil servants about military coups in India is neither discussed on TV nor written about in national/regional dailies, thus this travesty of truth remains hidden. Second, military personnel retire at a relative young age around 50 years; their civilian contemporaries retire at 60 years. It is critical that these two truths are stated in electronic & print media both regional and national to educate our population. When the possibility of Armed Forces staging a coup is ridiculed on TV and in print, then the politician cannot accept this theory. Sadly the media has failed the nation and our military in particular, by neglecting this issue.

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"...to mistreat and deliberately mismanage the issue of OROP is criminal with serious implications on both external and internal security of India."

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Disregard & Disinterest. The so called upper classes, elite, bureaucrats/ technocrats/ business entrepreneurs/ rich professionals couldn't care less about what the faujis do, what they get, how they manage their affairs and such tiresome issues. When they are safe, secure and successful, the fauj is irrelevant. Whether the material and emotional wherewithal given to the fauji and his family is adequate for maintenance of national security and safety, is far from their minds. They pay taxes and expect the Govt to ensure their security to generate wealth for themselves and India. They are not to be blamed for this indifference, because our politico/bureaucratic/extra-constitutional power centres have encouraged disinterest about matters military.

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Year after year no one seeks information about the Defence Budget, whether funds allocated are adequate, justified, commensurate to threats, or wasteful. The public has a very poor understanding of how threat is assessed i.e what are the inputs, who debate and determine the threat, and how it impacts each Indian man, woman and child. It is sadly of no concern to more than 95 percent of Indians. This is the biggest hurdle in the fauji getting anything justifiably due to him.

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The 6th Pay Commission, controlled and configured by bureaucrats, has generated avertable bitterness between bureaucrats and military. Pensioner's protesting across the country, returning medals, rallies, sparse articles in the odd national daily, with some TV exposure has created insignificant awareness, certainly not enough to convince the average Indian, that something is terribly wrong about our fauji's pensions. Deplorably, no one is bothered. The fauji is not looking for sympathy, he does not need it. He wants the nation to understand why he is asking for OROP, not as a gift but a right.

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The disdain for Indian Armed Forces, consistently demonstrated by the politico-bureaucratic-extra constitutional combine, is translated into negation of a justified demand for One Rank One Pension.

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A Quick Perspective. Till the 60s, OROP was in vogue as Military Pension, and faujis got 65 percent of last pay because most had to retire in their late 40s/early 50s while civilians got 33 percent since all served up to 58 years. The 3rd PC abolished Military Pensions, reduced it to 50 percent, increased civil pensions to 50 percent, and added a proviso that to earn full pension a govt servant must serve for 33 years. Thus most military men seldom got full pension because very few could serve for 33 years, but the civil servants invariably got full pension because they served till the age of 58, getting them at least 33 years of service.

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Look at the perfidy of this rule and the shabby treatment meted out to the Armed Forces? The Supreme Court has already declared that pension is, "delayed wages for services already rendered". But look at it this way, Colonel Kapur who retired with 24 years of service at the age of 48 years in 1989, must get the same pension as Colonel Ghosh who retires today at the age of 50 years with 24 years of service. Why must Colonel Kapur have to beg for this, he is only seeking justice because he had to retire at a much younger age than his civilian contemporary who joined the IAS at the same time.

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The civilian does not retire with only 24 years service at the age of 50 years, he carries on till the age of 60, and crosses that 33 year barrier. Recently the Supreme Court was constrained to rebuke the Govt for "treating soldiers like beggars". Regrettably our media, so fond of sensationalism, has not cared to take up cudgels for the military, which provides and preserves that freedom of expression the media clamour for.

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Enormous Numbers and who is Responsible?

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The Numbers Are Staggering. The number of retired Officers and Other Ranks is large. Studies have shown that for every serving man/woman, the number of pensioners will soon double. Big standing Armed Forces is inescapable to defend our land, its coastline, air space and borders. Add to this the burden of keeping military manpower available for, taking over tasks of the para-military, disaster relief, mega national events etc. Looking at the politico-economic-adversarial relationship with our neighbours, the regional inter-se equations and our global ambitions, trimming the Armed Forces is not an option today.

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Who Got Us into This Condition? Who but the civilian leadership of India have brought us to this perilous state? Their acts of commission & omission have created a hostile environment within and around India, making it impossible to drastically decrease the size of our military just to cut the pension bill. So don't blame the Armed Forces for the number of pensioners. Young men are enticed to join the Armed Forces because there is a pension, which is a big attraction. Our large population ensures multitude applications for few vacancies, and we get a voluntary military force that is exploited to the hilt by civilians, and then aborted like unwanted pregnancies at a young age. How long will this carry on?

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So What can be Done and Urgently? To ignore unhappiness among retired military personnel is undesirable, but to brush aside and snub disenchantment among the serving military forces is dangerously foolish. Which is why, even with an unblemished 63 year service record since independence, the equation between the military and civilian masters remains skewed against the military, with great possibility of greater disillusionment within the Armed Forces?

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The Indian military leadership has ensured loyalty, integrity and obedience from the rank and file, and will continue to do so. But to expect that leadership to maintain loyalty in the face of gross injustice is challenging the very roots of good military conduct and behaviour. Serving faujis will become pensioners one day, if they have misgivings about fair-mindedness of the system throughout their military service, somewhere, sometime, something will snap. India's one billion people will not be able to contain the ill effects of such a breakdown. So there is urgency for remedy, clearly, truthfully. We may be running out of time, Indian governance cannot practice brinkmanship with its own Armed Forces.

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What Justifies the Military

Demanding One Rank One Pension?

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Does Honour, Izzat, Life Threatening Occupation Matter? It has been said that izzat, honour, life threatening occupation are irrelevant to pension. Let's accept it. A recent comment on TV equated the danger to a fire-fighter to that of a soldier fighting terrorists. Ridiculous as it is, one fact is indisputable; the fire does not shoot bullets nor lobs grenades, at the fire-fighter. Further comparison is unnecessary. Notwithstanding the truth that a fauji's occupational hazard is far severe than all other's, and he braves those hazards for izzat, camaraderie, and honour of his unit, let's not consider this factor for granting OROP. It is incomprehensible by non-military persons.

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Service Under Colours in the Forces. Being a force that demands high physical fitness, it is imperative that the average age of a serving officer or soldier is kept low. Most if not all, retire by the age of 50 years. Of the four lakh boys who aspire for NDA every six months, only 250 will enter the Academy. Of these 250 not more than 20, less than 10 percent will reach the rank of a Major General, equated to Joint Secretary in the IAS.

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On the other hand, more than 85 percent of boys and girls joining the Lal Bahadur Academy for IAS probationers will become Joint Secy. While 80 percent of those 250 boys who joined NDA retire before 50 years, all IAS probationers are guaranteed service till 60 years. If a Colonel does not become a Brigadier, out he goes. If a Deputy Secy does not become a Director or Jt Secy, he continues as Deputy Secy till 60 years. Is this `civilian control over the military'? The injustice in this equation begs the question, how does this impact pension?

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...the fauji is not seeking what the IAS gets. He has no quarrel with what any other Govt servant gets. He wants what he justifiably deserves.

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How Is Pension Amount Arrived At? Pension is based on last salary drawn, and depends on the actual years of service put in. In the Armed Forces (AF), there is a sliding scale of pay for every rank except the top two rungs. A Colonel who retires at 50 years will get a pension based on salary at retirement which will not be the maximum salary of a colonel. If he had served for till 60 years he would receive that maximum salary and get maximum pension of a Colonel. The IAS probationer, who say reaches the rank of Director, and does not get promoted, need not retire at 50 years as the Colonel has to. He remains a Director till the age of 60, by which time he gets maximum salary for a Director and so maximum pension for a Director.

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In effect the IAS probationer is not only assured service till the age of 60, he is also assured maximum pension of the rank he reaches. Not so for a fauji. Why not? What is the faujis fault? Why is he discriminated? Are faujis the wretched unwanted children of the work force of Government of India? When these facts are explained lucidly by influential TV anchors and newspaper editors, then Indians will comprehend OROP, and why it is justified? It is pertinent to add that the fauji is not seeking what the IAS gets. He has no quarrel with what any other Govt servant gets. He wants what he justifiably deserves. Therefore the next question, what do faujis actually want?

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A Fully Justified Benefit. Without doubt, the conditions of service for faujis and their families are more difficult than for any civil servant. The trauma of frequent transfers, changes of children's schools, serious threat to life and limb, and near certainty of retiring by 50 years, is itself adequate grounds for generous compensation. The aim of Govt, which includes IAS bureaucrats, should be to find ways and means to deliver this compensation gracefully and willingly. It should not be wrenched from the arms of the IAS boffin as if he were giving away his share. Look at it another way.

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Rate of promotion in Armed Forces is much slower than in civil services. It takes at least 30 years to reach the rank of Major General, whereas IAS cadres get to Joint Secy, equated to Major General, in as little as 18 years.

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Most IAS officers, who get posted to Central Govt after their tenures in districts, remain in New Delhi hopping and skipping from one ministry to another for 15 to 20 years. They stay in the same house in the New Delhi and their children complete school and college without disruptions. Observe the stability for the IAS officer and family — absolute constancy! During the same 20 odd years of serene IAS stability, the fauji gets transferred at least six times, with changes of schools, homes, settling in and packing trauma, different climate and associated health problems and forced family separation because of operational assignments — all this happening unfailingly every two to three years? Does this not deserve recompense? Would not One Rank One Pension be the most appropriate gesture? Is OROP not justified?

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Impact on Other Central Government Cadres. This is a myth to deny the Armed Forces their justified demand of OROP. All Central Services employees serve till 60 years whatever rank they attain, and automatically get full pension of that rank. Rate of promotion in Armed Forces is much slower than in civil services. It takes at least 30 years to reach the rank of Major General, whereas IAS cadres get to Joint Secy, equated to Major General, in as little as 18 years. Look at the incongruity, the civil servant starts getting a Major General's salary with 18 years service, a good 10 years before the fauji gets it, yet the civil servant grudges the fauji OROP. Someone should tell the bureaucrat that the Indian Armed Forces are not the enemy.

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Is OROP a Financial Burden on India? Another cussed bogey is that OROP will be an unbearable burden for India — pure lies, misleading propaganda, obstruction to deny justice to the faujis. Whenever all else fails, the Armed Forces are called for remedy. Foot bridges for CWG are re-built by the Army? When Central and State governance fail against Naxals and Kashmiri militants, they want the Army and Air Force to take over. When natural calamities overwhelm, the Armed Forces are called in. What is tragic is that in planning bridges, making disaster relief plans, formulating anti Naxal operations, the Armed Forces are never consulted, but when the chips are down, they are ordered to step in.

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The investments into these frequently failing Central Govt organisations will dwarf OROP payouts. Is it not shameful for India to treat her faujis in this shabby manner? Is there no `sanskara' in the way politicians and bureaucrats function? Have they divorced themselves from what is right? Should the `babu' do to military personnel what is repugnant to him? The mismanagement of CWG/G2 Spectrum is an object lesson on how politico -bureaucratic-extra constitutional combine ruin a straightforward project for greed powered by ego or `ahankaar'. OROP is not a burden, but an obligation to be fulfilled by Indians for their Armed Forces.

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Conclusion

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The unusual and unstable service conditions `enjoyed' by Armed Forces officers and men along with their families are unparalleled requiring a unique and compassionate approach to their scales of salary, pension, housing and so on. Nothing hurts the fauji more than unjust treatment which is crafted with deliberate cussedness and meanness by those who know better and should respond in a balanced manner. OROP is justified whichever way it is examined, it is neither bad in law, nor is it discriminatory.

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OROP is not a burden, but an obligation to be fulfilled by Indians for their Armed Forces.

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Unsettled service conditions, greater risk to life, forced separated living; severely disciplined environment and denial of many privileges available to civilians are peculiar to the fauji. But none of these are determinants for OROP. The fauji is not complaining about these restrictions, he accepts them as a part of his duty.

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The moot issue is that the fauji has to retire at a young age, his retirement is determined by the maximum age attached to rank he holds, he therefore cannot serve till he becomes eligible for the maximum salary of that rank, and thus cannot get the maximum pension for that rank. Against this, his civilian contemporary can serve till 60 years irrespective of rank and thus gets the maximum salary and automatically maximum pension. This anomaly is unacceptable in any civilised society. A disciplined military cannot and will not take to the streets to protest injustice like other sections of society do.

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Of the many pillars of India, most are accused of corruption, sycophancy, cronyism, lack of courage, regressive and such adverse epithets. The Armed Forces remain unaffected and is the sole unblemished pillar inspite of occasional black marks. For the civilian politico-bureaucrat-technocrat together with extra constitutional power centres, to mistreat and deliberately mismanage the issue of OROP is criminal with serious implications on both external and internal security of India.

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All that the Armed Forces request is that any soldier, sailor, airman, must get a pension corresponding to, the current salary for his rank the and actual years of service put in, irrespective of when he retires. A Havaldar who retired in 1975 with 18 years of service must get the same pension as the Havaldar who retires today with 18 years service. A wing commander, who retired in 1994 with 22 years of service, must get the same pension as a wing commander who retires today with 22 years service. There are no riders, no deletions and no add-ons. It is as simple as that, because, truth is the only thing which cannot be improved upon.