by
The VII Central Pay Commission (CPC)
under the Chairmanship of Justice Shri Ashok Kumar Mathur is deeply
involved in preparing the report based on the terms and references set out by
Govt of India. While all the stake holders may find their representation in the
commission, the representation of the Defence Forces directly, is missing
against the promise made by the UPA Govt earlier. In a
predominantly civil servants dominated commission, the perception of the Civil
Servants will have direct influence on the final award to the Armed Forces
personnel. One may recall that the previous finance minister once made a
statement that there is no provision for a separate pay commission for Armed
Forces, but available facts indicated otherwise, as till 1973 (III CPC) Defence
Forces had it's own pay commissions. As in all the previous Pay commissions, the
unresolved anomalies, presumably numbering 30 or so, created by the VI CPC in
respect of Armed Forces have been forwarded to the VII CPC for resolution. In addition,
it is learnt that it also includes NFU (Non Functional Up-gradation),which was
granted to all Group A services, but denied to Armed Forces Officers. This is
certainly a departure from the stand existed till VI CPC. While remaining
optimistic, it would be worthwhile to put across certain known issues, but
ignored otherwise when coming to decisions on the emoluments and status of
Defence Forces Personnel. We hope someone in authority takes cognisance of the
issues stated in succeeding paragraphs.
The Civil servants from Group C to
Group A are covered more or less under the same rules, which include IAS, IPS
and IFS also. All civilian employees can serve till 60 years of age, they
have an assured career progression, cylindrical
grade/promotional structure, serve in stations more or less on a permanent
basis, stay with families in all stations, spouses can take up job if
qualified, children get education in the same schools and settled before
retirement, fixed hours of work and in case it exceeds eight hours in a day
then overtime allowance, can avail of all holidays and authorised leave, LTC
facilities every four years, pension at the maximum scale at the time of
retirement with maximum length of service, CGHS facilities, no risk to life and
limbs, facilities for career enhancements including study leave and a congenial
atmosphere to live a dignified life after retirement. They live in well constructed
accommodation with abundant supply of water and electricity and fresh
food even in the remote areas. The job contents of white collar employees
are generally administration and office management. They enjoy guaranteed
fundamental rights like freedom of speech, movement and right to form unions
and associations.
The central police organisations (CPOs)
have a slightly varied career profile in certain respects. They undertake
operations against Naxals and insurgents and are deployed in the J&K and NE
states for internal security duties, alongside Army. The BSF, Assam Rifles and
ITBP are also deployed on borders. Though they are not Jawans but constables
in literal sense, but our omniscient media and public at large have
made them Jawans, with its detrimental affects to the image of Armed Forces. The
wearing of smoke denim dress in different shades by them have further
compounded the identity issue. What is not understood by most of the civilians
which includes the bureaucracy and politicians is that, their
employment on the borders is only during peace time. On
the commencement of hostility they are withdrawn to the rear areas to
be deployed in less threatened localities under army units / formations,
which get deployed during war. Their employment is for defensive
purposes only. They are neither trained nor are employed for offensive
operations against enemy, across the border. They are a second line
force in all it's manifestations. They have no representations in
high altitude, snowbound and uncongenial areas. All other terms and
conditions of their service are like other civil employees. They have no
similarities with the Armed Forces personnel, though many perceive that
there is no difference between the two. Certainly they have a higher degree of
difficulty and risk as compared to other white collar jobs. All their duties
outside their permanent locations are treated as temporary duty with
consequential financial benefits.
The bureaucracy, public,
media, politicians and even educated citizens perceive the Armed Forces
personnel (Army, Navy and Air Force) in a totally different way, unless they
have very close friends or relatives in the forces. Their perception
is based mostly on what they see outside in villages while on leave, journeys, peace
stations and other common venues like aid to civil authorities, disaster
relief, Republic day parade or other ceremonial activities and Services
Headquarters in Delhi.
The distinction of Armed Forces are:-
(a) They ensure the sovereignty of
the country against
external aggression and internal disturbances.
(b) They undertake all operations to
include external, internal, aid to civil authorities and miscellaneous
activities efficiently under all circumstances and hold the country
together.
(c) They are the only reliable and last bastion
of the state to restore all adverse situations, generally caused due to failure
of civil administration.
(d) The
Army cantonments/Military stations are well laid out
and maintained in keeping with the conservation of nature and
environmental protection.
(e)
All establishments are a class by itself as compared to such
civilian establishments.
(f) They never failed the country except in 1962, when
the country failed them.
(g) They are a symbol of national unity and
integrity.
The erroneous perceptions are:-
(a) Defence personnel have reservations for jobs
on retirement.
(b)
They enjoy free medical facilities, ration including liquor, unlimited
free travel with reservations against quota, highly paid as compared to civil
employees, enjoy additional financial benefits like high altitude
allowance, separation pay, military service pay, fast promotion, and a high
standard of living. Many opine that soldiers have no work during peace time and
in peace stations and some even suggest that they must be employed for civil
works like construction, afforestation, environmental conservation, swatchh
bharat abhayan etc as otherwise they are wasting the tax payers money. Some of
our colleagues do boast while on leave or meeting friends about the
perks and privileges of servicemen, as a camouflage to conceal the actual life
conditions and the exacting service requirements, which sways opinion. The
smart uniform, rows of medals on chest, deportment, level of confidence and
efficient management of personal affairs adds further to the envy of their
civilian brethren.
It is essential to
understand the psyche and role of soldiers as compared to civilian employees to
make a reasonable comparison particularly while deciding on pay and allowance
and consequently their status in society. At present it is akin to yoking
together two in-equal entities merely based on perception, which is
far away from truth. The accepted general principles one can perceive in
this regard are :-
(a) The length of
service.
(b) The job content including risk
to life and limb.
(c)
Promotional prospects.
(d) Existing precedence.
(e) The requirement to attract
suitable material for service in the forces.
(f) Deficiency in man power particularly in the
officers cadre.
The other considerations could be:-
(a) The existing state of morale.
(b)
Security and strategic environment prevailing in the country.
(c) Employment of defence forces in the present
context.
(d) Effectiveness and efficiency of the present
organisation to deal with external and internal security threats and natural
and manmade calamities.
It is also important to look across our
neighbours and other world democracies and how they are treating their military
personnel and veterans. Our soldiers are looking for Izzat, and recognition for
their selfless service to the Nation at all times and not during calamities or
war only.
Military service is unique in
it's nature and contents. It is
a recognised fact that there is no profession in the world as exacting as the
military service. Nearly two thirds of our military personnel are always deployed
on active military service at any point of time. This includes deployment in NE
states and the J&K for counter insurgency / counter terrorism
operations, deployment on the Indo-Tibetan border and LAC with China, deployment on
IB & LoC along our western border with Pakistan and in Siachen Glaciers. We
also have sizable force from all three Service deployed in Andaman & Nicobar
Islands. The Naval personnel are similarly deployed in coastal areas along with
the Coast Guard for maritime security. The Indian Air Force is always on call
to support the Army and Navy, besides carrying out strategic reconnaissance. The
Forces are withdrawn to peace stations of varying class after a hard field
tenure, for recuperation and refit. The emphasis in peace stations is
on training to hone their war fighting capability. Units and
formations remain on training upto three months to four months in a year away
from their peace stations at a stretch. Life at times gets tougher than field
stations because of multifarious duties like internal security, disaster
management, ceremonial parades, guards and ceremonial duties etc. Even in peace
stations there is limited time to a soldier (Includes all ranks) to stay with
the families.
Military service is a 24 hours duty
without any break. There is no overtime allowance or temporary duty allowance
as in civil jobs. The soldiers are conscious of their responsibility towards
security and their role in Nation building. Their eternal vigil on the border
and during internal threat ensures security of the citizens and the Country. At every
stage, both in field and peace stations there is risk to life and limbs, more
so in field stations. With every fatal casualty there are a minimum of five to
six more casualties with varying degrees of disability. In our country the
disabled are the "Living Dead". There is strict
disciplinary code for conduct and all orders from superiors have to be
obeyed, unless the orders are unlawful. The punishment for indiscipline is
severe and prompt. Their fundamental rights are restricted, like freedom of
speech, movement and formation of unions and associations. The authorised
leave is not a right but a privilege, implying that it can be curtailed
based on exigencies of service. A person can be recalled from leave any time if
services are essential. Due to acute shortage of officers which is now almost
12500?, at the cutting edge level, the pressure of work is more in Units. The
fighting units are operating at 50% strength of officers. The officers seldom
get their entitled leave. The youth of the Nation are not interested in joining
the forces, without attractive remuneration, status, pride, respect, job
security and an assurance that the country will take care of them and their dependents. As per
the study carried out at the behest of Govt on life expectancy of employees it
was found that the length of life expectancy of soldiers is 10 plus years less
than civilian employees. The life in the field stations are difficult to
visualise by any stretch of imagination. Besides the enemy bullets and
shelling, the vagaries of weather and altitude adds further to the woes of
soldiers. A soldier who is facing enemy bullets and shelling every day, is not
sure if he will see the next day. The life of a soldier spending his
field tenure in a six by six bunker where he does everything is
unimaginable. The visiting members of CPC, will never be able
to empathize with the plight of our soldiers deployed
in high intense operational areas, in it's true sense, though they are
making an effort in this regard.
The erroneous view that a
soldier gets everything free is unfounded. He incurs expenditure out
of his carry home pay for many things of day to day life like any
civil servant. Officers and men also incur heavy expenditure in
maintaining varying types of dresses and accouterments
in peace stations as per the dress
code for various occasions. though such expenditure is less in field stations. Soldiers
are often compelled to maintain three establishments during field tenures parents
in village, wife and children in selected place of residence/separated quarters
necessitated for education of children and self at the duty stations, incurring
additional expenditure. Even in peace stations married accommodation is not
readily available, hence many continue to maintain same establishments as
in field. In stations
like Delhi, it takes 11/2 years to get an entitled accommodation. The soldiers
keep shifting from one location to other in make shift accommodation, before he
finally gets entitled accommodation. By then
half the tenure is over. The expenditure in such things are never visualised, by
our civilian counterparts. Children shift schools every two years on an
average and their spouses cannot work even if qualified as they have to manage
the house hold affairs and children. Besides there is no continuity of service
due to frequent move, which is generally between 11/2 to two years.
Military rank structure is
pyramidal and any upward move by promotion results in large number
of super-cessions at every stage. To illustrate:
we cannot have three Havildars in a section which is commanded by one
Havildar. Likewise a company can have only one commander and a
Battalion cannot have two commanding officers .The Rank structure
cannot be diluted to accommodate all eligible people. The Armed Forces are
already suffering due to increased ranks based on
the recommendations of AV Singh Committee appointed by MoD.
On the contrary, in civil any promotion can be made at free will to accommodate
career progression. In any
case where promotion is not feasible the the NFU takes care of the individual
needs of officers. In military
it is not promotion boards but rejection boards as the deep selection caters
only for filling the existing vacancies. Those rejected by the promotion boards
are not unfit but they cannot be accommodated in a highly pyramidal
organisation.
Advancement in technology and
terrain necessitates changes in warfare and to add to it,
troops are now deployed virtually for every duty where the civilian
organisations have failed. Military restores all adverse situations under
trying circumstances with minimum of resources and time. Military leaders from
section commander to the highest are leaders of men (Though not called for
Leadership conclaves), managers ,excellent administrators, technocrats, staff
officers and virtually jack of all trades and profession. Every soldier to
officer has to appear in various promotion examinations unlike in most civil
jobs. They have to face competitive exams, even after initial enrollment.
De-facto for every ladder, one has to be qualified in various professional
courses in Armed Forces Schools of excellence and have to be graded fit for
promotion under the watchful eyes of his superior commanders upto three
ladders. Even after all these stringent selection process one may not make it
because of lack of vacancies.99% of the personnel retire from 35 to 54 years of
age ,leaving the service when responsibilities increase. A soldier sees a very
dark future for him as there is no assured employment on retirement and he
cannot serve till 60 years of age like his civilian brethren. His life time earnings
are almost half of his civilian counterparts.
The reserved vacancies in
states are a farce as most states fail to comply with the directions of the
Central Govt. Lack of avenues for future, forces the soldiers to stand as
security guards ,in various hotels and offices saluting all and
sundry affecting their pride and morale. This can only
happen in our country, as the soldiers have no voice and hence
no choice.
It is again an
incorrect perception that the soldiers are uneducated and not qualified for
any other job in civil. He operates sophisticated and state of the
art weapon systems, computers, handles ships, air crafts, missiles, bombs,
constructs bridges and undertakes every job known in civil under
adverse conditions efficiently. Every soldier is trained in at
least two trades. They are the best asset for Nation building but their
expertise and talents, where Govt has invested heavily go waste. A lateral
shift will add to the Nations might with no extra cost and at the same time
saving on the heavy pension bill. This is the best tonic for boosting the
sagging morale, of armed forces.
Till III CPC Defence services had
separate pay commissions. The Defence Pension was 70% of the last
pay drawn and the civil pension was only 33%,which has now become 50%
for all. The warrant of precedence and status have
been gradually eroded with every CPC .A DIG of police with 15 years
of service who was placed below a Colonel in the Army till V CPC ,is now
equated with a Brigadier with 26-28 years of service, merely because he wears
the same badges of rank on his shoulders. The argument that
the warrant of precedence is only for ceremonial purpose is a farce,
as common man do not understand this logic, especially when the post
is supported by pay scale and grade pay. The introduction of Grade pay and NFU
have virtually ensured an assured career progression for civilian
employees. Even a Group B officer equates with a Brigadier in about 16 years of
Service. In combined organisations like MES, Ordinance Factories / Depots, GREF, DRDO,
AFHQ Cadre, BSF, CRPF, ASSAM RIFLES etc, Military officer becomes junior to his
ONCE subordinate in a matter of time in pay and status. It is a
humiliation to a service officer to be treated like this at the hands
of bureaucracy which frames rules without consulting all
stake holders. Virtually every direct entry Group A officer retires
at the highest grade and all others generally at Joint Secretary level, as
compared to only 1% service officers attaining the status of a Joint Secretary
and point 018% of officers attaining Lt General/Additional /Secretary
level status. IAS and IPS officers become Director with 12 years of service, joint
Secretary at 18 years and secretary at 28-30 years of service. In between
are posts like additional secretary, special secretary etc. A
Colonel/equivalent is promoted at 16-17 years, Brigadier 25-26 years and Major
General at 32 years of Service. Promotion being pyramidal 94% of officers
retire at 54 as Colonel/Time scale colonel. The percentage of
Brigadiers, Major General, and Lt General is 5, 1 and .018% respectively. With
the denial of NFU only to Services, what is the standing of a Service
officer?
The case of Other Ranks (NCOs & JCOs) is still worse as they
retire between the ages of 35 to 45 years of age. Due to reduced length of
service they cannot attain the assured career progression and maximum of the
scale of pay, at the time of retirement as in civil. A
Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) is a Class B Gazetted rank but he
is now equated with an Upper Division Clerk (UDC).Can there be more
injustice than these? Is it the reward for serving the Country, pledging one's
life? Who has brought us into this pitiable state? All damages
have been done by subsequent CPCs dominated by Civil Servants, who feed
incorrect statistics, manipulated by junior bureaucracy, and prevail
on the Chairman. During the V CPC justice Shri Pandian as the
chairman was learnt to be sympathetic towards the services, but when the final
report was released it was no better. It was
revealed that all false data concerning the services were submitted
by the MoD, fed by a section of junior officers, the very
organisation entrusted with the welfare of soldiers without seeking any
inputs from the Services. Till IV CPC, Services, trusted, the MoD staff to
take care of their welfare. The case of Rank pay (Granted by IV CPC) decided in
favour of Service Officers by the SC exposed the deceit and intent of MoD
into forefront. The trust deficit between the two entities has widened
now. The VII CPC now gives an opportunity to the MoD staff to realize their
sacred duty towards the soldiers and take appropriate steps to repair the
damages, by projecting their case truthfully. Soldiers are not greedy as being
stated by a section of MoD junior staff, but we expect a fair deal in all
respects, in keeping with the nature of service. The Defence services have no
enmity with the bureaucracy as being perceived by
a section of the MoD junior bureaucracy.
An argument may now be
developed that with the approval of OROP (One Rank One Pension) all the disparities
will be fully addressed. OROP relates to pension only. It equates
pension of the past and present retirees based on length of service and Rank held. It benefits
all service pensioners of all Ranks. The NFU is applicable to all officers
of Group A service.It is a paper promotion in a way and an
indirect way of OROP for civilian officers.It allows Group A officers to come at par
with IAS/IPS/IFS in grade and pay within a gap of two years of an IAS officer
getting promoted.Even if no vacancy for promotion exists, they get the grade
and pay based on length of service. OROP in no way caters for early retirement
of officers at 54 and lack of avenues for promotion based on pyramidal
structure, the peculiarities of Service Officers only.Excluding
Defence services officers from NFU is a total justice to an entity
which serves the country selflessly under trying conditions.
All judges of the SC serve
upto 65 years of age and most of them including High Court judges are
appointed for various commissions and tribunals after retirement. Similarly
most of the bureaucrats manage to serve till 65 years after
retirement in many statutory bodies and some of them even get into public and
private corporate establishments based on contacts established during service. In the case of defence service officers demonstrated
with professional competence and administrative ability, they
do not find place in any of the statutory bodies or public sector undertakings.
Their talent and expertise are wasted. A minuscule number of
senior officers is offered gubernatorial posts, generally based on political
contacts. This in any case is not digested well by their peers and subordinates
for various reasons.
To summarize, the
expectations of the Armed Forces are:-
(a) Restoration of eroding status.
(b) Compensation for short tenure
necessitated by service, consequently reduction in life time earnings and
pension
(c) Compensation for lack of career
progression due to short tenure and pyramidal structure of Service Ranks by
lateral placement, enabling service till 60 years of age as in civil.
(d) Grant of NFU to Armed Forces
Officers. The Military Service Pay is in no where a compensation for NFU, as
minuted by MoD staff while denying the same for Service officers.
The exclusive issues for
preferential treatment are:-
(a) Restriction on fundamental
rights.
(b) Risk to life and limb.
(c) Separation from families.
(d)
Exacting service conditions.
(e) Adoption of Disability Act with
suitable modifications suiting service conditions and compensation to live a
dignified life for the living dead.
It is time that
the Bureaucracy (Junior officers in MoD) shed their ego, superiority and
envy in the interest of the Nation and look after the Services, treating it as
their solemn duty. They must reverse their priorities as in the Services
ie Nation first, men second and lastly their own interest. Political
masters will come and go but the services and bureaucracy are there to
stay as permanent echelons of the Govt. They must restore the status of
Armed Forces, grant them NFU like all others, abolish grade pay for all
employees since it indicates status, increase Military Service Pay
substantially as a percentage of pay to attract the best talent for Defence
Forces and ensure lateral placement in defence related establishments and
Central police organisations on retirement/voluntary basis and if required
institute statutory provisions / Parliamentary Acts
for fulfillment of the same. Special provisions must exist for war
widows, martyred families of soldiers and the Disabled particularly the war
disabled who are yet to be covered by the Disability Act of 1995.Since the
Veterans have an umbilical cord with the serving and also as a recognition
and gratitude for their services to the Nation in more trying
condition, they need to be taken care of, like the soldiers in
other democracies across the world. It is not
the weapon but the man behind the weapon which will ensure a strong India!
(Veteran PT Gangadharan from
Guards is a war casualty with paraplegia. He suffered spinal cord injury while
commanding an Infantry Brigade on the LoC in the J&K in 2000. His movement
is confined to wheel chair. He stays at Calicut (Kozhikode) and can be
contacted at E Mail brigadier.ptgangadharan@gmail.com
Brigadier PTGangadharan, Guards,
E Mail ID- brigadier.ptgangadharan@gmail.com
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