Facts about OROP

Salient Features OF One Rank One Pension which all must know and have been projected to differenrt committees including the latest of Rajya Sabha.
.

By Veteran Brig K.G.Behl

President Dehradun Ex Services League

.

Defence Personnel are known by their ranks and the whole system of Defence Forces runs on ranks alone where seniors draw more pay than juniors and their orders are implemented by juniors as law. But those who are not conversant with this system but have been put in positions of power to administer are weighing rank with money and have in the process degraded the value of Ranks. They have, money wise, brought all senior and junior ranks almost equal in Pay/Pension damaging the whole structure which was a pyramid, making it almost flat. They have, thus, taken away zeal to work hard to achieve goals and have removed the initiative to look up to reach higher ranks to the top. If ranks can be got after so many years of service sitting in offices who will like to suffer hardships by going out in field away from comforts and separated from families and fight at the stake of one’s life. The rank structure has to be restored to old traditions maintaining respect in ranks where orders of seniors were followed with dedication and devotion. The customs and high traditions for which Defence Forces are known are required to be maintained and taken ahead to set new laurels. This is where ‘One Rank One Pension’ becomes essential as the 6th CPC has made it topsy-turvy. They have tried to make all Daroga ji, without realizing that no one will be left to fight.

.

The Supreme Court has already declared that pension is, “delayed wages for services already rendered’’ and as such it should be equal for all who have rendered equal service in, irrespective of year of retirement. This is what OROP means. It is compatible with the spirit of Article 14 of the Constitution of India.

.

In layman language, One Rank One Pension, means that pension of all those who hold same rank and equal years of service, what ever rank it may be, should be the same irrespective of the year when one retires. It is the ideal OROP where one retires at the maximum of the Scale one holds at the time of retirement and has served then for maximum number of years needed to earn full pension. If this is implemented no one retiring after him in that rank will get more pension. It automatically solves OROP problem once for all.

.

In other words the pension of those who retired before or after 1.1.2006 should be the same. But presently it is not so and there is vast difference in pension of those who retired before 1.1.2006 and those who retired after 1.1.2006. Actually seniors retired before 1.1.2006 are getting less pension than their juniors retired after 1.1.2006, which is causing lot of embarrassment and heart burning and is lowering the morale of the troops. It can only be set right if OROP is immediately implemented.

.

It has happened because the element of Maximun Pension one can earn has been removed from the 6th CPC and only retirement after 20 years has been included without making mention of maximum years required to earn full pension. That means that in civil one can go up to 60 years to earn maximum Pay/Pension but in Defence Forces the maximum pension is limited to retirement age which varies from rank to rank. Since practically all retire earlier than 60 years they cannot earn maximum Pay/Pension. Why this disparity?

.

In sixtees and seventies, acknowledging the special nature of the Defence services and early retirement, pension was fixed more, based on different slabs, for JCOs and OR and 50% of last pay drawn for Officers, but it was 33% of last pay drawn for civil services, for they served for more number of years and earned more Pay by the time they retired. But God knows why it was brought to 50% for all by the 3rd CPC, benefiting civil but damaging Defense and denying them the extra bit allowed for their peculiar service conditions.

.

However 3rd CPC, retired all Defence Personnel, including officers, at the maximum of the scale in which one was serving at the time of retirement and were given retirement pension equivalent to the number of years of service done- maximum being 30 years of service at that time to get full pension. Though some weightage was being given for earlier retirement to bring up service to 30 years but it was far behind for those who retired earlier as per their rank in order to keep the Defense Forces young, especially, other Ranks who retired at the age of 36/38 years of age after completion of 15 years of service. To keep a ‘young profile’ for the defense forces, their personnel are retired early (95% of defense personnel retire between ages 32-45). The weightage of 5 years was given for early retirement but was still much less to reach 30 years needed at that time to fetch maximum pension.

.

At the time of formation of 4th CPC, it was expected that they will suggest ways and means to raise the weightage so that Defense personnel may get better pension. But the 4th CPC, instead of raising the weightage tried to improve other factors and introduced Rank Pay and Integrated Pay Scale for officers who fail to make the grade.

.

But the 4th CPC sanctioned Rank Pay, over and above the normal pay but some mischief mongers in MOD, could not bear it and deducted equivalent amount of that from the Basic Pay of the individual officers, there by denying them of the extra benefits, thus granted.

.

Unluckily, the deduction was made from basic pay, which amounted to lowering of status and accordingly giving lower scales and less allowances. It went unnoticed for some time as Rank Pay was shown in Pay slips of officers but no mention was made of its deduction from Basic Pay. When one of the officers noticed it and took the matter to Kerala High Court, he was paid the differences deducted but others where similar deductions were made were denied this legitimate right. Later even when Hon'ble Supreme Court upheld it, they are still trying to delay it further under one or the other excuse. It has not been paid from 1.1.1986. It varies from Rs. 300/- to 1200/- per month.

.

The Integrated Pay scale introduced for the benefit of those who missed the Bus was limited to different ranks alone and grouping in those became harmful than beneficial to all concerned and officers for whom it was especially introduced were denied of the benefits.

.

The Rank Pay got doubled during 5th CPC, due to 100% merger of DA in Pay. Luckily our financial pundits did not deduct this doubled amount from the Basic Pay of officers, as they did earlier and allowed this increase in Rank pay after 5th CPC. But the decrease made in Basic Pay earlier was not restored and the loss for that is being suffered even today after so many years. Many benefits giving to civil were to be provided to Defence Forces but were denied and made them suffer while civil enjoyed

.

The 5th CPC granted 30% disability Pay, 2 to 3 years exra weightage in service in lieu of increase in years of retirement, etc. But even those were denied, inspite of the fact that all in line, including the Hon'ble Defence Minister and the supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, the service Chiefs, were supplied with full facts of the case. Since the age of retirement has been raised and corresponding increase in maximum service needed for full pension raised to 33 years from 30 years, the corresponding weightage should have been raised which was not done though 5th CPC who raised it by 2-3 years for civil. This increase was denied to all Defence Personnel even though it was stated in 5th CPC Report that it applies mutatis mutandis to Defence Forces.

.

However one of the committee of Mimisters was appointed by the Govt. to look into this aspect and raised weightage of service at retirement of Other Ranks to 30 years but God knows why they did not make it 33 years needed then to get full pension. Had they brought that to 33 years it would have automatically killed OROP issue once for all. However it can still be raised to 33 years as granted by 5th CPC for increase in age of retirement. For OROP maximum of the Scale being drawn and 33 years of service is needed and it can be done as suggested above. It will solve OROP problem once for all.

.

It is thus a simple issue and will not require large funds as is being projected as most of the personnel are already getting or will get once the denied portions of Rank Pay etc. are restored. For Jcos and other ranks the Govt. has already raised pension by merging different classification into one in their latest letter, there by bringing pensions up to roughly 80% instead of full as demanded as per OROP as they have limited themselves to 30 years and not 33 years as required.

.

Once it is done and all are retired at the 50% of the maximum of the scale they held at the time of retirement, with maximum of service to earn full pension, the problem of one rank one pension, automatically gets solved. It is compatible with civil too where practically every one retires at the maximum of the scale one holds at the time of retirement as they serve up to sixty years, and complete more than 33 years of service needed to earn full pension and in the process almost all reach the maximum of the scale they hold at the time of retirement. If in civil some, very few, do not reach the maximum of the scale at the time of retirement they can be given the same benefit.

.

What all happened during 6th CPC all are aware as Pay Scale and Pay and Allowances were worked by 6th CPC on lower basic pay, as per lower data supplied by MoD and automatically granted lower Grade Pay and scales. A lot of hue and cry was made at all levels for setting right Grade Pay and status viv a vis other civilians who were below our scales and Pay earlier. Govt. in a hurry immediately rectified some of the glaring anomalies but others benefits as granted to civil were denied and causes heart burns when they sit together or see them in higher positions than them when actually they were junior to them before the 6th CPC report was proclaimed. Why this disparity? It has happened because MoD showed to 6th CPC our deducted Basic Pay which was less than others and no wonder 6th CPC gave every thing less and lowered our status vis a vis others. This needs to be restored.

.

But the main anomaly persists where minimum of the new scale has been taken for fixing pay in new scale though most of the persons are already drawing more than the minimum of the scale. This fact has already been upheld by the Armed Forces Tribunal(AFT) in case of Majors and need to be applied in all cases as per example given in 6th CPC report. This needs to be implemented immediately. If it is implemented faithfully very little difference will remain to supplement ‘OROP’. Actually whatever one was drawing during 5TH CPC be multiplied by 1.86 and correspondingly be fitted in new grade scale.Where ever the amount falls short of the minimum of the new scale, it can be brought to the minimum of the scale. But 6th CPC has given example of working of new Pay by taking minimum of the Grade and not minimum of the revised scale, the basis on which pay of serving personnel have been worked out. The pension should automatically be 50% of the Pay so worked out.

.

The weightage of 33 years of service to earn full pension should be made applicable to 6th CPC as well and those who served for less number of years than the maximum required to earn full pension , would automatically get less. The weightage element should be applied on 6th CPC as well and it would automatically remove most of the anomalies.

.

The concept of OROP has found favour with all major Indian political parties (Congress vocally in 2002 and again in 2009, BJP in 2009 etc) OROP has been recommended to be introduced by numerous Standing Committees for Defence headed by Shri KP Singh Deo and Shri Satpal Ji Maharaj in 2010 and 2011 and various other Parliamentary committees. Judiciary has supported it in numerous decisions (Nakra and Maj Gens case in 2009,), and yet, it has been stalled just short of implementation. Almost all the Prime Ministers, the Defense ministers, the empowered Committees of Ministers, all Party Parliamentary Committees on Defense and representatives of all political parties have been in favour of granting OROP to the Defense Forces because of the special service conditions.

.

One Rank One Pension is a must for Defence Forces and be implemented at the earliest. Family Pensions should also be accordingly regulated. They should not be denied of the latest benefits being granted to other Defence Perssonel.