Double Family Pension

Queries are constantly received on this blog as to whether families of re-employed defence pensioners are entitled to the benefit of double family pension separately for military service and re-employed service. For example, if a military pensioner joins a pensionable non-military service after his release from the defence services and then dies in harness while in the subsequent service or dies after earning the second pension, then is his family entitled to the benefit of double family pension separately in respect of both the services ?.
The answer is NO.
However there are exceptions to the rule. In case the second pension is ‘contributory’ in nature, then both family pensions are admissible. The Courts have held that both family pensions would also be admissible if the second pension is granted from a non-government fund or from a fund / trust specifically created for the purposes of a pension scheme as is the case with most nationalised banks.
While the above is the current legal position, it would actually be much desirable if families of those personnel, civil or military, who have earned two pensions, are also granted the benefit of two family pensions since if the government employee himself / herself had earned two pensions, then depriving the family of the extension of the same does not stand to logic.

Service element : civilian employees now at par with defence personnel

Disability pension in the defence services as well as the civil services consists of two elements – service element and disability element. While service element is related to the length of service (proportionately reduced for service below pensionable span) subject to a minimum of Rs 3500 at 6th CPC rates, disability element is linked to the percentage of disability.
With effect from 1973, there was no minimum service requirement for earning a service element in the defence services and a person with even one single day of service was made entitled to service element.
There is no requirement for a minimum qualifying service for earning a service element for civil employees too under the CCS (EOP) Rules, however this was true only for operational disabilities. For non-operational disabilities for diseases such as hypertension etc, there was a minimum requirement of 10 years of service on the civil side to earn a service element though practically this did not matter much since normally civil employees are not prematurely discharged on medical grounds as routinely as is in the case of defence services.
However now the govt has abrogated the minimum requirement of 10 years’ service for earning a service element on the civil side even for non-operational disabilities and placed them at par with defence retirees.
A welcome step indeed for disabled personnel from the civil services.
The letter, which has financial effect from 01-01-2006, can be accessed by clicking here.

When number portability is enabled....

Telecom minister Kapil Sibal on Thursday will unveil mobile number portability in Haryana, allowing 18 million cellphone users in the state to retain their number while changing the service provider. Most of the country will have this facility by the New Year, while it will be available throughout the country by March 2011.
Here we bring you the to-dos of mobile number portability in six quick steps:

• Send an SMS to 1900 in following format: PORT - eg. PORT 9999999999.
• You will get an SMS reply that contains a unique porting code.
• SMS to the preferred operator quoting the unique code. This code is valid only for a few days, and one must apply again if it expires.
• Your existing operator will check with new operator & if there are no dues then approval will be given for porting.
• You will get an SMS on the time and date when porting will take place. Rules mandate that process be completed within 4 days of applying.
• After porting is complete, wait for an SMS from your new operator confirming the switch. Your phone may be dead for about 2 hours when the porting takes place.

Immediate Separate Redressal Commission for Armed Forces : Supreme Court (Updated)

The Hon'ble Supreme Court today ordered the immediate constitution of a separate commission to examine the pay / pension anomalies and other grievances of the defence services.
The functioning of the commission would be directly monitored by the Supreme Court. The Commission would comprise of Justice Kuldip Singh, Retired SC Judge as the Chairperson and would have as its members Justice SS Sodhi, General VP Malik, Lt Gen Vijay Oberoi and one person to be nominated by the Government of India.
The Commission would independently look into the grievances of members of the defence services and the Government would have no say in the same.
The Government of India, in its affidavit, had only consented to refer the rank pay issue to the proposed Commission and did not agree to any other term of reference. The Court disregarded the affidavit alongwith the stand of the Government and also ruled that the rank pay issue would NOT be referred to the Commission since the orders had already been passed by the Supreme Court. The Court also refused to recall or modify its earlier orders on the rank pay issue and instead referred the review application preferred by the UoI to the Chief Justice for directions that it be placed before some other Bench.
A historic step indeed for the Armed Forces of India.

The salient features for the said Commission, as laid down by the Supreme Court in its order, are as follows :
(1) The Commission shall be called ‘Armed Forces Greivances Redressal Commission’
(2) The Commission shall look into all grievances forwarded to them in writing or email by serving and retired personnel.
(3) Commission shall frame schemes for rehabilitation of soldiers who are discharged at young ages.
(4) The term of the first Commission shall be two years, renewable at the option of the central govt.
(5) The Commission shall be based at CHANDIGARH. Central Govt to provide adequate infrastructure for the same.
(6) Last drawn pay and allowances of the members to be protected.
(7) The Commission shall also recommend change of rules if in its opinion the same are defective or inadequate.
(8) All civil and military authorities to extend full co-operation to the Commission.
The complete order of the SC can be accessed by clicking here.

Treatment of MSP on re-employment

A fresh clarification has been issued on the treatment of Military Service Pay on re-employment.
The same can be accessed by clicking here.

The operative part is as follows :
“It has been decided in consultation with the Department of Expenditure, that since the element of MSP is not reckoned in the pay fixation on re-employment, it need not be reduced from the pension either. Hence, In respect of all those Defence officers/personnel, whose pension contains an element of MSP, that need not be deducted from the pay fixed on re-employment.”

Dearness Allowance for Central Government employees hiked

New Delhi, Sep 16 (IANS) Around 8.8 million central government employees and pensioners came in for a double, pre-festive bonanza with the government raising their dearness allowance to 45 percent Thursday, a day after hiking the interest rate on the provident fund by 100 basis points.

The decision to hike the dearness allowance by ten percent was taken in an union cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, said an official spokesperson.

The decision to raise the dearness allowance over the basic pay from 35 to 45 percent to compensate the rising prices will cost the exchequer an additional Rs.9,303.2 crore per annum, the spokesperson said, adding the new allowance would come into effect from July 1, 2010.

The burden during the current fiscal has been estimated to be Rs.6,202.1 crore, she said, adding: 'Increase in allowance is as per the formula based on the recommendations of the Sixth Pay Commission.'

Inflation stood at 8.5 percent in August, with food inflation hovering above 15 percent, as per the new wholesale price index, with the base year now shifted to 2004-05 from 1993-94 and as many 241 new items added to the basket of commodities to asses the benchmark index.

The central government has over 5 million employees and around 3.8 million pensioners, said the spokesperson.

The increase in DA comes ahead of the Dussehra and Diwali festivals in October and November, respectively.

6th CPC anomalies : Story not yet over

The Govt of India had set up a National Anomaly Committee to look into and iron out various anomalies arising out of the Sixth Central Pay Commission.
Keeping in view the fact that many anomalies have not been settled to the satisfaction of central govt employees and pensioners, the govt has extended the term of the NAC till 31st of March 2011.
The committee would hence continue examining anomalies of the 6th CPC till the said date.
The letter issued by the Govt in this regard can be accessed by clicking here.

Soldiers of Misfortune

Dear All,

Antipathy of MOD towards Defence Veterans continues unabated,will it ever end?

Kindly read on.

Regards,

Ramesh HT

Soldiers of Misfortune : India Today

Sandeep Unnithan has very comprehensively covered the issue of disability benefits in the defence services through his very detailed write-up in India Today.
The logical reaction should be that of introspection and not of lament. We all must play our little roles to improve the system and make it fair, just and equitable.
The Services Headquarters have been very supportive of the cause and have time and again propounded an improvement in the system, but in the road towards change, one of the major problems is the lack of continuity of officers at key positions which hampers the smooth transition towards perfection. This ultimately leaves the field open for leveraging by lower level officialdom which is manned by people who do not wear uniform and who cannot analyse the ground situation too well.
For starters, most of the problems would be sorted out if all members of medical boards and the civilian staff at the PS Directorate are made to properly read and apply the Entitlement Rules, 1982, while examining disabilities. This simple and elementary action would cut disability litigation into half, mark my words.

They forget national Heros- they harass their dependents- This is India!!

We have heard many stories how disabled/mentally challenged are ill treated and harassed in India,especially by bureaucrats and medical care personnel. Of course, our middle class who are expected to be the leaders of Society just do not care. Many ESM had told heart-rending stories about their experiences at the hands of these stone hearted and empty headed men in authority. Will you believe that we have many from this crowd of heartless morons in our Head quarters (in this case Army Hq) and military hospitals also? No wonder, our highest court passed some severe strictures recently against the Government while disposing the case of a disabled officer.
Here is the story of a disabled son of a great war hero when India fought its first war at the dawn of our Independence against Pakistan in Kashmir. When I joined IAF, I learnt about the great sacrifice of Col Rai in saving Srinager Air field from the invaders during our lessons on Military History. We were told that India would have lost Kashmir at that time but for the valiant rescue of the Air Field by Col Rai that enabled Indian Army to rush the troops (including Guns and Tanks) to fight the invaders. Just read the following story and understand how how the very same Army through its high serving officers today had treated the son of Col Rai who was, in addition a mentally challenged individual.
S.Murugan.

Pension for Arunjit
by Harwant Singh

ARUNJIT was barely four years old when he suffered a head injury, which put an end to his mental growth. While he grew into his fifties, his mental faculties remained that of a child of four years. Although there was nothing childlike or childish in his behaviour and to a casual observer he appeared almost normal, he needed constant nursing and attention.

His mother was widowed at an early age and drew a pension from the defence department. When she died some years ago, Arunjit being handicapped, was entitled to a pension based on some rule the British had wisely framed to help such cases. The pension department of the defence required a certificate from civil surgeon stating his medical condition and his inability to make a living.

Now civil surgeons don’t give certificates unless some “authority” asks them to examine the case. With the help of some local contacts and an understanding staff at the Sector 16 hospital, a full medical board was constituted which confirmed Arunjit’s medical condition and opined that he was totally incapable of making a living.

However, the pension authorities were not satisfied and now wanted to know his IQ as determined by a psychologist. The Sector 16 hospital had no means to test the IQ, but agreed that the results of tests carried out in the military hospital would be acceptable towards issue of an appropriate certificate. A long letter explaining the special nature of the case and Arunjit’s entitlement for treatment in a military hospital was sent to the commandant. While the psychologist at the military hospital within minutes of testing, concluded that Arunjit’s mental age was that of a four-year-old child, yet he decided to grill him with endless series of tests for a few more hours, which was a painful experience for Arunjit. His IQ was recorded as 19 (30 IQ is the lower limit for anyone to look after himself, leave alone make a living) and based on these tests the psychologist at the Sector 16 hospital gave the necessary certificate.

Yet, the pension authorities were not satisfied and required another certificate. This time from the “appointing authority”. Now who could be the appointing authority for Arunjit and to what appointment was he placed; as a mentally challenged person ! Only God could have appointed him in that condition. No clarification was forthcoming from the pension people. Then we suggested that, “appointing authority” may actually be, “appropriate authority,” which the pension people reluctantly accepted. Now in this case the appropriate authority, they said, is the Army Headquarters( AHQ). But why AHQ? Anyway, AHQ declined to give any such certificate. May be they felt Arunjit could make a living, perhaps by taking to begging!

While this endless struggle, spread over four years, to get him his due pension was still on, Arunjit was taken seriously ill and had to be rushed to the military hospital, where at first, he was refused admission because the authorities there felt he was a non-entitled case, though they knew that he was entitled to a pension from the defence department. Then there was a letter from the previous army chief stating his entitlement to treatment in a military hospital and yet another letter earlier sent to the commandant at the time of tests for determining his IQ, giving his background and entitlement.

All that was of little avail and nothing could move the hospital staff. Some pull, push and a jack got him into the military hospital. But the surgeon went away before the appointed date for his operation and the authorities decided to discharge him. So when his sister went to meet him, she found him slumped in a wheelchair in the verandah, rather than in his bed. He had been discharged in the morning. This ejection from military hospital was followed by desperate rounds of some private hospitals. In his condition, this to and fro shifting was too much for Arunjit and he gave up life gasping for breath.

What entitled Arunjit to a pension from the defence department? His father, Diwan Ranjit Rai, was in command of 1 Sikh, the most famous battalion of the Indian Army when he was dispatched, post haste, along with two of his companies, to save, if possible, the Srinagar airfield and the town from the advancing tribal hordes. He accomplished this task with remarkable skill and daring. Alive to the historic nature of his mission, he acted well beyond the call of duty and in the process laid his life.

In fact, by saving the airfield he saved the Srinagar valley. He was the first officer of the Indian Army to lay down his life in the defence of J and K and also became the first recipient of Maha Vir Chakra (MVC) in the country. Arunjit was his only son and the rules entitled him to a pension and treatment in a military hospital. His pension never came through and authorities at the military hospital never reconciled to his entitlement. Bureaucracies, civil or military, are equally heartless, pitiless and cussed. 

There is nothing Good or Bad, it is all about Choices ........ So choose wisely.
Don't believe all that you hear and don't say all that you think.
Learn to listen. It is an art.
Not knowing something is normally a milestone on the way to Knowledge.
S.MURUGAN.
AIR CMDE(Retd)
D532, Jalvayu Vihar,
Kalyan Nagar Post,
Bangalore-560043.
Tel No" 080- 23682532.
Mobile: 9343730552.

Dismissal of IAF officer recommended for outraging modesty

Dismissal of IAF officer recommended for outraging modesty
PTI
Thursday, June 10, 2010 21:23 IST
New Delhi: A court martial has recommended dismissal of a senior IAF
officer after finding him guilty of "outraging the modesty" of junior
female colleague.
Wing Commander HS Virk, posted in Agra, was tried by the general court
martial (GCM) in Bareilly last month after a lady officer alleged that
he was passing objectionable comments on her.
The GCM, headed by Group Captain P Kumar, found him guilty and
recommended his dismissal.
While a confirmation of the sentence by the air officer
commanding-in-chief of Allahabad-based Central Command is awaited, Virk
has approached the Armed Forces Tribunal, contending that he was being
kept in "illegal detention" by the air force.
Appearing before the tribunal on Virk's behalf, his counsel Rajiv
Manglik said the GCM had recommended the Wing Commander's dismissal but
the IAF had kept him in confinement even though there was no sentence of
imprisonment.
Arguing against the plea, the IAF said Virk could not be released as the
sentence recommended by the GCM was yet to be confirmed by the higher
authorities.
Hearing both sides, the tribunal directed the IAF to release the officer
on bail and to send him on leave for two weeks.

IAF combat and heavy-lift chopper trials to begin by July

Sun, May 30 02:49 PM

Philadephia, May 30 (IANS) The Indian Air Force (IAF) seems set for trials of new combat and heavy lift helicopters this summer, possibly from June or July, as Boeing gets ready to field its latest versions of AH 64D Apache and Chinook CH-47F helicopters.

So confident is Boeing that its top executives say the company is looking forward to be the first in the trials so as to set benchmarks that others in the competition cannot possibly match.

The US spends so much on Research & Development (R&D) that 'our products are unbeatable in hi-tech and precision engagement', Dean Millsap, Regional Director, Asia Pacific for Boeing Rotorcraft Systems told India Strategic (www.indiastrategic.in) defence magazine.

The heavy lift Chinook, for instance, is the only helicopter that can land on water in an emergency, and also operate just above the water level to land or evacuate troops or people in a natural disaster situation.

IAF is looking for 22 Attack and 15 Heavy Lift helicopters as replacement for its Soviet vintage Mi 35 Attack and Mi 26 Heavy Lift machines which have served well but are too old now either to carry on or bear the burden of modern technology. The RfP for the two new aircraft was issued last year and besides Boeing, Russia's Rosoboronexport has offered newer versions of Mi 35 and Mi 26.

Italy's Finmeccanica, which owns AgustaWestland now, has offered the Mangusta attack helicopter, currently in service with the Italian Army. AgustaWestland has already won the IAF's order for 12 VIP helicopters.

As in case of the combat jets for the Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft (M-MRCAs), trials for which have just been over, field trials for both the new helicopters would be held in hot and humid weather in the deserts of Rajasthan and the heights of the Himalayas, Jaisalmer and Leh included.

The Indian Army and Air Force are already holding trials for the utility helicopters in these regions, which are required in large numbers from imported and indigenous production kits. There is no Transfer of Technology (ToT) clause though for manufacturing the Attack and Heavy Lift helicopters in India.

Notably, IAF's Mi 35s have been upgraded over the last few years with Israeli night-fighting devices, but the airframes are too old for any more technology insertions. IAF had acquired half a dozen Mi 26 choppers for ferrying supplies to the Himalayas but hardly a couple of them are now able to fly, one problem being the lack of spares as its manufacturing facilities have closed down after the disintegration of the Soviet Union 20 years back.

Mi 26 is a huge machine though, equivalent to an An-12 aircraft that the IAF once used to fly.

But Millsap says: 'No helicopter can match the stability of the Chinook, whose contra-rotating twin-rotors withstand rough weather in land, mountains and sea.'

In Afghanistan, where the US and NATO forces are fighting the Al Qaida and Taliban terrorists, Chinooks maintain a steady supply to the troops while the Apaches give them cover if required in a battlezone.

Adds Vivek Lall, vice president and India country head for Boeing Defense and Space (BDS): 'The Apache will be a capable and lethal defender of India's troops and assets, while the Chinook will answer many of the Indian military and humanitarian requirements.'

While Millsap briefed a visiting Indian media group, invited by Boeing, on the capabilities of the AH 64D Block III, which is still under development, other company executives, Jack Dougherty and Mark Bellow, highlighted the capabilities of the Chinook with graphic footage from the troubled Afghan mountains.

The first Block III Apache would be delivered to the US Army in 2011 and to the IAF within three years or less of the signing of an agreement, Boeing officials said.

Government Approves Massive Expansion of ECHS

To provide equitable treatment to all eligible Ex-Servicemen and their dependents under the Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) and to enhance the scheme’s coverage, the Union Cabinet today approved Establishment of 199 new polyclinics including 17 mobile medical facilities and 15 new regional centres at a cost of Rs. 141 crores. With this, the ECHS facility will now be extended to those areas, where Ex-Servicemen population is below 2,500 by setting up polyclinics which are within reasonable distance from Ex-Servicemen concentrations.
            The Cabinet also approved reorganization and strengthening the Central Organisation ECHS by suitably increasing the manpower. It has authorized additional manpower – 2263 in number on contractual basis, to man the additional 199 polyclinics. It has also authorized 315 serving personnel – 60 officers and 255 PBORs, for proposed regional centres and seven officers and 15 PBORs for Central Organisation ECHS.
            Financial implications towards creation of infrastructure will be about Rs.141 crore. This will entail a capital expenditure of Rs. 118.52 crore towards cost of land, construction and medical equipment. An amount of Rs. 22.25 crore of expenditure will cover purchase of furniture etc, and IT hardware. On the recurring side, an expenditure of Rs.43 crore per annum is envisaged.
It may be recalled that the ECHS was introduced on April 01, 2003 to provide comprehensive medical coverage to Ex-Servicemen pensioners, war widows and dependents by establishing 227 polyclinics at stations with Ex-Servicemen population above 2500 throughout the country. 106 polyclinics are at military stations and 121 polyclinics are at non-military stations. Where the Ex-Servicemen population is less than 2,500, the Ex-Servicemen face hardships in reaching polyclinics because of the distance. There are over 30 lakh ECHS beneficiaries now. On an average 60,000 Servicemen retire every year and this results in a further addition of 60,000 Ex-Servicemen and 1,44,000 dependents to the list of beneficiaries each year. Over 7 lakh Ex-Servicemen, who retired prior to April 01, 2003 have not opted for the scheme primarily due to non-availability of polyclinics near their places of residence. There are also insufficient number of regional centres to monitor the polyclinics.
Following is the list of additional polyclinics planned to be established: -
Jammu & Kashmir
Baramulla, Doda, Poonch, Baribrahmna (Jammu), Kargil,  Nagrota (Kathua)
Himachal Pradesh
Rampur (Shimla), Nahan (Sirmaur), Shahpur (Kangra), Palampur (Kangra), Kullu, Dera Goppipur (Kangra), Jogindernagar (Mandi), Chamba, Ghumarwin (Bilaspur), Sarakaghat (Mandi), Barsar (Hamirpur),
Punjab
            Mohali, Ajnala (Amritsar), Tarantaran (Amritsar), Beas (Amritsar), Nawansahar, Suranassi (Jalandhar), Uchi Bassi (Hoshiarpur) , Abohar (Ferozpur), Jagraon (Ludhiana), Batala (Gurdaspur), Srigovindpur (Gurdaspur), Sultanpur Lodhi (Kapurthala) , Phagwara (Kapurthala) , Samana (Patiala), Barnala (Sangrur), Nabha (Patiala), Doraha (Ludhiana), Samarala (Ludhiana), Mahalpur (Hoshiarpur) , Talwara (Hoshiarpur)
Haryana
            Gohana (Sonepat), Mehan (Rohtak), Sampla (Rohtak), Loharu (Bhiwani), Kosli (Jhajjar), Bahadurgarh (Jhajjar), Gurgaon, Nuh (Gurgaon), Charki Dadri (Bhiwani), Mahendragarh, Narwana (Jind), Palwal (Faridabad), Hansi (Hissar), Dharuhera (Rewari), Narayangarh (Ambala), Kharkhauda (Sonepat)
National Capital Territory of Delhi
            Shakurbasti, Timarpur, Khanpur, Preetvihar
Rajasthan
            Neem Ka Thana (Sikar), Shergarh (Jodhpur), Dausa, Sanganer (Jaipur), Bhuwana (Jhunjhunu), Bhilwara, Suratgarh (Hanumangarh) , Dungarpur, Rajsamand, Rajgarh (Churu), Chirawa (Jhunjhunu), Behror (Alwar)
Uttar Pradesh
Bagpat, Gonda, Basti, Jaunpur, Greater Noida (GB Nagar), Lakhimpur, Moradabad, Bijnaur, Rampur, Hardoi, Banda, Roberts Ganj (Mirzapur), Barabanki, Unnao, Hathras
Uttarakhand
            Joshimath (Chamoli), Dehradun, Vikas Nagar (Dehradun), Tehri, Rudraprayag, Ranikhet, Almora, Bageshwar, Banbasa (Champavat), Rudrapur (Udham Singh nagar), Dharchula (Pithoragarh) , Lansdowne (Paurigarhwal) , Uttarkashi, Ramnagar (Nainital)
Bihar
            Bhagalpur, Kathiar, Motihari, Siwan, Samastipur, Madhubani, Buxar, Vaishali, Sasaram (Rohtas) Khagaria, Munger, Sitamarhi
Jharkhand
            Deoghar, Gumla, Chaibasa (West Singhbhoom), Daltonganj (Palamu), Dhanbad
Madhya Pradesh
            Satna, Ujjain, Amla (East Nimar), Pachmarhi (Hoshangabad)
Chhattisgarh
            Jagdalpur (Bastar), Bilaspur, Raigarh
West Bengal
            Berhampore (Murshidabad) , Baruipur (South 24 Pargana), Bankura, Howrah, Raiganj (North Dinajpur), Cooch Behar, Kalimpong (Darjeeling) , Binaguri (Jalpaiguri)
Assam
            Lanka (Naugaon), Bongaigaon, Tinsukia, Tezpur (Sonitpur), Misamari (Darrang), Dibrugarh, Goalpara, Dhubri, Lakhimpur
Manipur
            Chura Chandpur
Nagaland
            Mokokchung
Mizoram
Lunglei
Arunachal Pradesh
            Tezu (Lohit), Along (West Siang)
Orissa
            Puri, Sambalpur, Koraput, Angul, Bhawanipatna (Kalahandi), Dhenkanal
Andhra Pradesh
            Srikakulam, Anantapur, Karnool, Cuddapah, Nellore, Karimnagar, Eluru (West Godavari), Secunderabad (Rangareddy) , Khammam, Mehbubnagar
Tamil Nadu

Erode, Sivagangai (Sivaganga), Kumbhkonum (Tiruvallur) , Chennai, Ramanathapuram, Tambram (Kanchipuram)
Kerala
            Mavelikara (Alleppey), Kanhangad (Kasargode), Kalpetta (Wayanad), Thodupuzha (Idukki), Thiruvananthapuram, Changanacherry (Kottayam), Moovattupuzha (Ernakulum), Iritti (Kannur), Kunnamkulum (Trichur), Kottarakara (Kollam), Ranni (Pathanamthitta) , Killimanur (Thiruvananthapuram )
Karnataka
            Kolar, Tumkur, Hassan, Shimoga, Bangalore, Gulbarga, Bidar, Virarajendrapet (Kodagu)
Maharastra
            Beed, Nanded, Karad (Satara), Wardha, Navi Mumbai (Mumbai), Pune, Khadki (Pune), Yavatmal, Dhule.
Goa
            Vasco – Da – Gama
Gujarat
            Gandhidham, Surat, Rajkot
Pudduchery
            Pudduchery
            In addition to these polyclinics 15 regional centres will also be set up at Shimla, Jalandhar, Dehradun, Ambala, Hissar, Meerut, Allahabad, Ranchi, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Nagpur, Vizag, Bangalore, Coimbatore & Trivandrum.

Raw deal for ex-servicemen

Centre must give one rank one pension
by Lt-Gen Raj Kadyan (retd)

The ex-servicemen have been fighting for justice. In 2008, they took the unprecedented step of going public with their demands. Rallies were held at Gurgaon and 61 other cities throughout the country. The Sixth Pay Commission report had just come out and not unexpectedly the ex-servicemen got a raw deal.

By convention, a soldier is expected to maintain silence even after he sheds his uniform. He himself would prefer it that way. But his silence must be respected and reciprocated, instead of being exploited. His genuine aspirations must be met. Unfortunately, that is not being done.

Projecting one’s demand on a public platform was not an action taken easily or on impulse. Immediately on declassification of the Pay Commission report, the political leadership was contacted with all respect and deference that being the peoples’ representatives is their due. ‘One rank one pension’ or OROP, as it is popularly known, was the lead demand. It implies relating military pensions to length of service and rank on retirement, independent of the date of retirement.

Contact was established at the highest level in our political leadership. The only counter-argument was “if we give it to you, other government servants will also demand”. The ‘others’ are our own kith and kin, not adversaries. If they deserve it, certainly give it to them as well. However, if they are used as a pretext to deny the soldiers their rightful dues, then it is unfair.

It can then be argued that give OROP to only those retirees who like the soldiers stay away from their families for all/ most of their service life; to only those who perpetually follow a 24x7 work schedule; to those who face danger, and death on a daily basis; to those who are compulsorily retired when in mid-thirties on a pittance… and the list of differences goes on. Comparison is valid only between the similar.

The rally on April 27, 2008 was launched after due notice to the hierarchy. The government was apprised. There was concern. ‘Soldiers’ should not be doing it, we were reminded. When we claim soldiers are different and should not be clubbed with others, the notion is pooh-poohed. But in expectations we remain different. The dichotomy was pointed out. Silence. Placing our demand before the public was a compulsion forced by deaf ears; it was not a choice.

Seeing veterans on the road, even in a very disciplined manner could only jerk the authorities. It did. Within weeks of the first rally two of our demands were met; a separate pay commission for the defence forces and constitution of an Ex-Servicemen Commission. However, they failed to spread much cheer. The first would take effect only in 2016. Apart from failing to address immediate concern it was also looked at with suspicion.

Our bureaucracy- dominated government is known to find a difficulty for every solution, and there is enough time to do so. In the constitution of the Commission, the devil lay in details. The proposed list of members had only one retired military person. It even included a lady from political background, ostensibly to look after the interests of service widows, with whose condition she would be totally unfamiliar.

Interestingly, the commission is to be headed by a retired judge with no background in soldiering, the very basis for constituting a separate pay commission. The veterans rightly asked when the Women’s Commission is headed by a woman, the Minority Commission always by a person from the minorities, the Tribal Commission by someone from the tribal groupings, why the Ex-servicemen Commission should not be headed by an ex-serviceman? Silence.

The main demand of OROP remains unaddressed. The demand is neither huge nor extraordinary. It is not a demand for more money; it is rather a demand for equity and justice. Expecting equal remuneration for equal services cannot be called unreasonable. This makes the government reluctance to accept it even more intriguing. Defence forces are the last arrow in the country’s arsenal, also the most reliable. Picking at one’s healthiest tooth cannot be termed wise or rational.

The authorities have adopted many tricks to scuttle the OROP demand. They first ordered a committee (of bureaucrats, without a defence representative) to look into ‘OROP and related issues’. It only touched the so-called related issues. OROP was summarily rejected as being ‘administratively’ not feasible.

The government then claimed to be bound by the Committee’s recommendations. It is like the anecdote where a burglar pleaded innocence on the grounds that it was his hand that committed the crime and not he himself. In denying OROP the political class may not be complicit but they are apparently powerless.

There has surely been some enhancement announced for the pre-2006 pensioners. But there is still a wide gap between pre- and post-2006 categories. OROP has thus not been sanctioned, notwithstanding the government advertisements to the contrary.

There has been a spate of court decisions lately on pension related issues, all favouring the ESM. In one case the apex court used extremely harsh words against the government, which were reported in the media. The prevailing sentiments support the ESM demand.

The government needs to see the proverbial writing on the wall and sanction the long pending demand of OROP. Being a demand for justice the ESM will settle for nothing else. There is no wriggle room here. Yet, we will never cease to be what we always were while in uniform — disciplined, patriotic and responsible. n

The write is a former Deputy Chief of Army Staff

THE TRIBUNE,CHANDIGARH, DATED 23-5-2010

US Subaltern to be decorated 147 years after battle

Here is an interesting story on a brave American Officer who was a part of the Civil War.
1st Lieutenant Cushing would be decorated with the Medal of Honour this year for bravery displayed 147 years back. The officer died in 1863 at the age of 22.
Cushing, with his 110 men and 6 cannons, stopped the advance of about 13000 confederate infantrymen who were ultimately forced to retreat.
More details on the story can be accessed by clicking here.

US Navy starts its official blog

The US Secretary of the Navy, Ray Mabus, inaugurated the US Navy’s official blog recently : http://navylive.dodlive.mil/
The effort seems refreshing in the military blogosphere more so in the light of the free and frank discussion between various participants including the Secretary. An example can be seen by clicking here.

The blog seems in line with the thought process of militaries of (mostly) democracies in shedding the cloak (or more appropriately the burden) of secrecy, especially on societal and administrative issues. Such a medium is at times considered essential keeping in view the fact that sometimes the pulse of service-members does not reach the right levels of the hierarchy due to layers and layers of officialdom and red-tape.
The US Navy is available officially also on twitter, flickr, youtube and facebook.

Read this …

We need a permanent solution to this tussle over emoluments so that the armed forces need only confront the enemies of the nation, says T.R.Ramaswami
In the continuing debate on pay scales for the armed forces, there has to be a serious and transparent effort to ensure that the country is not faced with an unnecessary civil-military confrontation.That effort will have to come from the netas, who are the real and true bosses of the armed forces and not the civil bureaucracy. A solution may lie in what follows. This country requires the best armed forces, the best police and the best civil service. In fact that is what the British ensured.. By best one means that a person chooses which service he wants as per his desires/capabilitie s and not based on the vast differential in prospects in the various services.

How much differential is there?

Take Maharashtra, one of the most parsimonious with police ranks thus still retaining some merit -

The 1981 IPS batch have become 3-star generals, the 1987 are 2-star and the 1994 1-star.

In the army the corresponding years are 1972, 1975, 1979. – ie a
differential of 10-15 years. While the differential is more with the
IAS, the variance with the IPS is all the more glaring because both are uniformed services and the grades are "visible" on the shoulders.

First some general aspects. Only the armed forces are a real profession – ie where you rise to the top only by joining at the bottom. We have had professors of economics become Finance Secretaries or even Governors of RBI. We have any number of MBBSs,engineers, MBAs, in the police force though what their
qualifications lend to their jobs is a moot point. You can join at any level in the civil service, except Cabinet Secretary. A civil servant can move from Animal Husbandry to Civil Aviation to Fertilisers to Steel to yes, unfortunately, even to Defence.. But the army never asks for Brigade Commanders or a Commandant of the Army War College or even Director General Military Intelligence, even from RAW or IB. Army officers can and have moved into organizations like IB and RAW but it is never the other way round. MBBS and Law graduates are only in the Medical or JAG Corps and do nothing beyond their narrow areas. Every Army Chief - in any army - has risen from being a commander of a platoon to company to battalion to brigade to division to corps to army.In fact the professionalism is so intense that no non-armoured corps officer ever commands an armoured formation – first and possibly only exception in world military history – General K. Sunderji. Perhaps it is this outstanding professionalism that irks the civil services.

Next, one must note the rigidity and steep pyramid of the army's rank structure. In the civil services any post is fungible with any grade based on political expediency and the desires of the service. For example I know of one case where one department downgraded one post in another state and up-graded one in Mumbai just to enable someone continue in Mumbai after promotion!

You can't fool around like this in the armed forces. A very good Brigadier cannot be made a Major-General and continue as brigade commander. There has to be a clear vacancy for a Major General and even then there may be others better than him. Further the top five ranks in the army comprise only 10% of the officer strength. Contrast this with the civil services where entire batches become Joint Secretaries.

Even the meaning of the word "merit" is vastly different in the army and the civil services. Some years back an officer of the Maharashtra cadre claimed that he should be the Chief Secretary as he was first in the merit list. Which merit list? At the time of entry more than 35 years before! The fact is that this is how merit
is decided in the IAS and IPS. Every time a batch gets promoted the inter-se merit is still retained as at the time of entry. In other words if you are first in a batch at the time of entry, then as long as you get promoted, you continue to remain first! This is like someone in the army claiming that he should become chief because he got the Sword of Honour at the IMA. Even a Param Vir Chakra does not count for promotion, assuming that you are still alive. In the armed forces, merit is a continuous process - each time a batch is promoted the merit list is redrawn according to your performance in all the previous assignments with additional weightage given not only to the last one but also to your suitability for the next one. Thus if you are a Brigade Commander and found fit to become a Major General, you may not get a division because others have been found better to head a division. That effectively puts an end to your promotion to Lt. General.The compensation package must therefore address all the above issues. In each service, anyone must get the same total compensation by the time he reaches the 'mode rank' of his service. "Mode" is a statistical term – the value where the maximum number of variablesfall.

In the IAS normally everyone reaches Director and in the IPS it is DIG. In the army, given the aforementioned rank and grade rigidities and pyramidical structure, the mode rank cannot exceed Colonel. Thus a Colonel's gross career earnings (not salary scales alone) must be at par with that of a Director. But remember that a Colonel retires at 54, but every babu from peon to Secretary at 60 regardless of performance. Further, it takes 18-20 years to become a Colonel whereas in that time an IAS officer reaches the next higher grade of Joint Secretary, which is considered equal to a Major General.These aspects and others - like postings in non-family stations - must be addressed while fixing the overall pay scales of Colonel and below. Thereafter a Brigadier will be made equal to a Joint Secretary, a Major-General to an Additional Secretary and a Lt. General to a Secretary. The Army Commanders deserve a new rank -Colonel General - and should be above a Secretary but below Cabinet Secretary. The equalization takes place at the level of Cabinet Secretary and Army Chief.

If this is financially a problem I have another solution. Without increasing the armed forces' scales,reduce the scales of the IAS and IPS till they too have 20% shortage.

Done?

Even India 's corruption index will go down.

If the above is accepted in principle, there is a good case to review the number of posts above Colonel. Senior ranks in the armed forces have become devalued with more and more posts being created.But the same pruning exercise is necessary in the IAS and more so in
the IPS, where Directors General in some states are re-writing police manuals – one is doing Volume I and another Volume II!

Further the civil services have such facilities as "compulsory wait" – basically a picnic at taxpayers cost. And if you are not promoted or posted where you don't want to go they seem able to take off on leave with much ease. In the army you will be court-martialled. Also find out how many are on study leave. The country cannot afford this.

Let not someone say that the IAS and IPS exams are tougher and hence the quality of the officers better. An exam at the age of 24 has to be tougher than one at the age of 16. The taxpaying citizen is not interested in your essay/note writing capabilities or whether you know Cleopatra's grandfather.

As a citizen I always see the army being called to hold the pants of the civil services and the police and never the other way round. That's enough proof as to who is really more capable. Also recall the insensitive statements made by the IG Meerut in the Aarushi case and the Home Secretary after the blasts. Further, when the IAS and IPS hopefuls are sleeping, eating and studying, their school mates, who have joined the army, stand vigil on the borders to make it

possible for them to do so. Remember that the armed forces can only fight for above the table pay.

They can never compete with the civil services and definitely not with the police for the under the table variety.

Finally, there is one supreme national necessity. The political class – not the bureaucracy - which represents the real civil supremacy better become more savvy on matters relating to the armed forces. Till then they are at the mercy of the civil service, who frequently play their own little war games. At ministerial level there are some very specialized departments – Finance, Railways,Security (Home), Foreign and Defence, where split second decisions are necessary. It is always possible to find netas savvy in finance, foreign relations and railways. Security has been addressed in getting a former IPS officer as NSA at the level of a MoS. Is it time that a professional is also brought into the Defence Ministry as MoS? The sooner the better. In fact this will be better than a CoDS because the armed forces will have someone not constrained by the Army Act or Article 33 of the Constitution.Of course the loudest howls will come from the babus. The netas must realize that a divide and rule policy cannot work where the country's security is concerned. Recall 1962?

Our army, already engaged in activities not core to their functions, including rescuing babies from borewells (!), should not have to engage in civil wars over their pay scales.I only hope our defence minister or anyone who would take a reasonable stand for defence forces ever gets to see this article.
It would definitely affect any person with an iota of integrity

The writer is a former banker who was with the SBI Group and DSP Merrill Lynch Ltd.

EX-SERVICEMEN CONDEMN THE DEFENCE MINISTER ’S STATEMENT

PRESS RELEASE

EX-SERVICEMEN CONDEMN THE DEFENCE MINISTER ’S STATEMENT ON ONE RANK ONE PENSION

The Defence Minister , Mr A k Antony had submitted a written statement in the Parliament on 19 April that the govt would not be able to meet the One Rank One Pension demand of the Ex-Servicemen fully due to ‘’administrative , financial and legal grounds’’ . He cited the recommendations of various Pay Commissions in support of the decision of the govt . He conveniently forgot that the Parliamentary Committee on Defence , consisting of 44 MPs belonging to all parties , in its 20^th Report had strongly recommended implementation of One Rank One Pension. It clearly shows that the govt has no regard to the recommendations of the elected representatives of the people but gives credence to its own nominated bureaucrats . It is a very clear example of the bias of the govt against the Ex-Servicemen

It is shocking that the Defence Minister has not given any details of the administrative, financial and legal grounds stated by him against the One Rank One Pension . He should know that all the all the Hon'ble Supreme Court judges , MPs , Ministers , MLAs , DGPs , almost all the secretary , Lt Gens etc get One Rank One Pension . So where is the legal problem , unless the govt uses two set of rules , one for its elite and other for the Ex-Servicemen ? Also all Central Govt employees , retire at 60 and get to the top of their grade and as such get near the One Rank One Pension. If there is no administrative problem for them why for the Ex-Servicemen ? .

It is agreed that there would be some financial effect of giving One Rank One Pension to the Ex-Servicemen but it will be drop in the ocean of all the scams which occur with sickening regularity , the IPL case being the latest where in the govt lost tens of thousands of Crores of rupees due to tax evasion. A few months back , ministers and MPs were asked to o travel economy class and with in those 3-4 months the govt saved Rs 2000 crores . If the govt is so economy conscious why did it withdraw those orders as the travelling time remained the same and the comfort level did not vary too much? Is the economy only applicable to the defence personnel ?

The Defence Minister and the so called committee of secys do not know the condition in which the soldiers serve . It is therefore suggested that all those decision makers be made to serve in the high altitude area even for a few days so that they become aware of the horrible and horrific conditions under which the soldiers operate . Then and only then will they know what soldiering is and why the One Rank One Pension is justified . Such irresponsible statements that too by the Raksha Mantri affect the morale of the serving who too will be Ex-Servicemen one day.

With Warm Regards,

Yours' Sincerely,

Brig Harwant Singh (Retd)

President, The All India Defence Brotherhood (Regd)

91+98144  32554 and 91+172- 2270154.

PENSION CASES CAN NOT BE DELAYED

‘If delayed, pay compensation for it, pay for the mental agony and stress…….’ Orders Consumer Forum.

Udupi District (Karnataka) Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum

[Case Nos. CC 134/2009 and CC 138/2009.]

Judgement delivered on 22-3-2010.

Case history:

BSNL Corporate office issued orders on 29-5-2008 for merger of DA in pay of employees with effect from 1-1-2007. Those who retired on or after 1-1-2007 should get its benefit in pension also. BSNL authorities at Udupi and Mangalore as well as the CCA office at Bangalore took their own time to merge DA and revise the pension. Udupi District P&T Pensioners’ Association took up the matter, wrote many letters. But authorities did not care. Finally, 13 BSNL pensioners and 6 family pensioners approached the Consumer Forum on 2-11-2009 against the delay and seeking compensation. Shri George Samuel, Secretary of Udupi District P&T Pensioners’ Association is the first complainant in both the cases. When the authorities came to know about the cases they woke up and merged the DA in pay of the complainants and revised their pension accordingly. But the case continued.

The Consumers’ Disputes Redressal Forum considered the following aspects:

1. Whether the pensioners are consumers? The Forum decided Yes.

2. Whether the delay in merging DA in the cases amounts to deficiency in service? Forum declared Yes. The delay can not be condoned.

3. Whether the complainants are entitled to reliefs? Forum said Yes.

After hearing the arguments of complainants and the Opposite Parties (CGMT Karnataka, CCA Karnataka Circle, PGMT Mangalore and Area Manager at Udupi) the Forum passed the following order:

“The complaints are allowed. The Opposite Parties are directed to pay to the Complainants in both complaints, interest @ 9% since and after 1-7-2008 till date of payment of the claim amounts (since paid) alongwith Rs 2000/- each Complainant in both the cases as compensation (except the complainant No. 1 in both cases) for mental agony and a consolidated amount of Rs 10000 each towards cost of proceedings in each complaint. The Opposite Parties shall pay the above amounts within a month from the date of this order. The OPs shall pay the above amounts to the Complainants and may recover the same from the employees who are responsible for delay in releasing the revised Pensionary benefits…”

Changes in pay fixation rules on re-employment

The DoPT has notified some changes in the rules of pay-fixation for government employees who opt for re-employment under the central govt after their retirement / release.
These changes are even more pertinent for those officers (including military) who opt for re-employment on appointments (and pay-bands) lower than the ones from which they retired.
The Central Civil Services (Fixation of pay of re-employed pensioners) Orders, 1986, stand amended to the extent mentioned in the ibid letter.
The new provisions can be accessed by clicking here.

Message from Maj Gen (Retd) Satbir Singh, SM Vice Chairman Indian ESM Movement

IESM COMPLETES TWO YEARS ON 27 APRIL 2010

Dear Veterans,

1. The Indian Ex Servicemen Movement (IESM) was formally launched on 27 Apr 2008 by placing a wreath at Amar Jawan Jyoti at India Gate. IESM is apolitical Movement with an aim of getting Justice for the Defence Forces. The event on 27 Apr 2008 at India Gate was replicated on the same day at other cities throughout the country. It is to our credit that inspite of the deep resentment within the Military Veterans, the Movement has been peaceful and dignified, this inspite of provocations by some mischievous elements. It is with some satisfaction to note that we have been able to achieve reasonable success by highlighting the Injustices done to the Defence Forces to the public at large and also the powers that be in the Govt.

2. The focus of our Movement is not only confined to rallies and holding meetings, but we are taking the fight for justice to the legal recourse and we have achieved a degree of success for which we should pat ourselves on the back. Certain AFTs and SC judgements have not only been favourable to us but the courts have passed strong strictures against the Govt and have given time bound judgements. It will be befitting the event if we go all out to commemorate the start of the Movement on 27 Apr 2010. The following suggestions are made:-

(a) On 27 April 2010, ESM across the country to hold meetings/rallies/ discussions/ seminars at village, block, tehsil, city, district and state levels as per the local situation and as decided by the local IESM convenors and motivators. These events be given maximum publicity through extensive media coverage. All ESM organizations across the country are requested to join in to create the desired intensity and visibility through out the country.

(b) I have requested the NDTV to replay the coverage of the event on 27 April 2010 a number of times during the day and hold panel discussion on the Movement, its events and outcomes. We will write to other media both print and electronic to cover the event. Let us hope the media plays up. All ESM who have contacts with the media, to please chip in and assist in organizing discussions and publishing articles.

(c) Veterans who have flare for writing to please write articles on Defence Forces, OROP, treatment of military over the years, current security scenario both external and internal, Indian military strength, security challenges, military leadership and challenges, making Military carrier attractive, civil military relations at its nadir causes and retrieval strategy, military pensions and any other contemporary topic. Maximum articles may please be published in National media to draw attention of the people of India . These articles should also be put on the internet on various blogs operating in the country.

(d) ESM organizations and individual ESM to interact with MPs, CMs and MLAs through out the country and solicit their support to our cause. OROP must be sanctioned at the earliest. Separate Pay Commission which has already been accepted by the Govt, should be set up now and all anomalies of earlier Pay Commissions be tasked to it to resolve in a given time frame say one year.

(e) Writing letters and seeking audience with PM, UPA Chairperson, RM and Supreme Commander. Impressing upon these functionaries the need to grant Justice to the Defence Forces. The Govt should be magnanimous enough to accept all the judgements passed by the Armed Forces Tribunals and the Supreme Court and implement at the earliest.

(f) Effecting Unity amongst all ESM Organisations and ESM. ESM Cells of various political parties to shed their baggage and join with the Movement to get our demands met.

(g) All out efforts be made to get signatures in blood and medals from volunteer ESM. Irrespective of the ESM organizations, we belong to, every one should join for the common cause of getting Justice to the Defence Forces. A very large numbers of signatures and medals should be deposited with the Supreme Commander the next time. Gen Raj Kadyan our Chariman has written a letter to the Supreme Commander today.

4. Let us rise to the occasion and All together Heave to get our demands met.

With kind regards,

Jai Hind

Yours Sincerely,

Maj Gen (Retd) Satbir Singh, SM

Vice Chairman Indian ESM Movement

Mobile: 9312404269, 0124-4110570

MNS Officers entitled to service privileges of regular officers : AFT

In a well reasoned decision, the Hon’ble Principal Bench of the Armed Forces Tribunal has held that MNS officers are also commissioned officers and are authorised to the privileges of their respective ranks.
The decision comes in the backdrop of the refusal of authorities to allow a Major General of the MNS from sporting stars and flying a flag on her official car.
The order has settled the controversy once and for all, but the issue makes one wonder as to why were stars and flags refused to such officers in the first place ? When an officer is holding a particular military rank, then it makes no sense to deny the ceremonial ancillaries of the same. It is the rank that is entitled to such privileges and not the service or the person who is wearing that uniform. When there is no bar on sporting the ‘stars’ on the collars, then in my humble opinion there should be no reason as to why a bar should exist on sporting the same very stars on the car !.

PAN become must for all transactions from 1st April 2010

Pan card has to be submitted for financial transactions. otherwise, tax burden will go up. The start of this new financial year requires additional effort from tax payers, as they need to be vigilant about their tax deduction at source ( TDS ). For some years now, there have been efforts made to ensure a particular procedure is followed for TDS and this includes disclosing the permanent account number (PAN).

Starting April 1, the punishment has been changed to a higher tax deduction for those who do not disclose PAN.

Tax at varied rates is deducted for various incomes and then the net payment is made to the beneficiary. The nature of income or earning, the person or entity receiving the income, determine the rate at which the tax is deducted. For instance, when a bank pays interest in excess of Rs 10,000 to an individual at a single branch, the tax is deducted at source from the interest earned. The individual will take a tax cut at the rate of 10 per cent plus an education cess.

As per the new guidelines applicable from financial year 2011, if a deposit holder does not provide the PAN, there is an obligation on the bank to deduct 20 per cent from the interest he earned, that is, double the rate applicable under normal circumstance. Here are some cases where the tax burden can suddenly jump higher for an individual. For better, easier understanding, the education cess is not taken into account.

INSTANCES

Many times, an individual has the PAN but does not disclose it. Like in case of a professional who has worked for, say, Rs 35,000. This could be a one-off service to a new client and in such a case, the PAN might not have been provided at the time of payment.

In this case, the entity making the payment would ensure that instead of 10 per cent, the tax is deducted at 20 per cent for not getting the person’s PAN. As a result, the individual’s net pay for his service is reduced to Rs 28,000.

Such a situation is likely with a large one-off transaction or even when the person does not normally come under the taxable limit. But, due to some extra payment, the tax is deducted at a higher rate.

THE VULNERABLE

Senior citizens are likely to get trapped in the higher TDS situation because they often have deposits with a bank or have invested in Government of India bonds, where the interest earned is more than Rs 10,000. Since the elderly have a basic exemption limit of Rs 2.4 lakh, their earnings may not come under the taxable limit. In that case, they can submit Form15H with the bank and avoid the TDS . However, if they fill the form but fail to mention the PAN, then they could be slapped with a tax deducted of 20 per cent instead of zero tax.

Usually, families have some deposits or bonds in the name of some members, even if they are unemployed like housewives. They have some deposits or government bonds in their name. Since, they are not working and do not fall under any tax bracket, they can submit Form 15G to the bank and avoid TDS . But, if they fail to provide the PAN in the form, they will be liable for a 20 per cent tax deduction at source.

PROCEDURES

There are often procedures adopted for various business dealings. One of it being quoting a PAN.

Often, when the mistake is realised, efforts are made to stop usage of the old number and replacing it with the correct one. In such a situation, could lead to authorities considering there was no PAN provided. Hence, the beneficiary could face a higher tax deduction.

For example, if there is a rent of Rs 20,000 paid per month to an individual, then the TDS on the amount would be 10 per cent. However, due to a wrong PAN disclosure, there could be some delay in conveying the correct number and in the interim, the tax could be deducted at the higher end.

DEDUCTOR’S MISTAKE

The worst situation is when an individual has provided his PAN to the concerned authorities. But, the there is a mistake committed by the authority. This could lead to either considering the number is misplaced or it is not given. Therefore, the deduction made is at a higher rate.

Example: The rate of tax deduction when a contractor is an individual is one per cent. If the authorities commit mistake with the person’s PAN, he will be slapped a higher tax outgo of 20 per cent. The difference will be huge, having a serious impact on the beneficiary.

WHAT TO DO

In sum, actual work begins even before the payment is made, because the PAN has to be conveyed to the payer. One condition in the new guidelines says the PAN has to be quoted in all correspondence, bills and vouchers exchanged between the deductor and the deductee, which will ensure the number is available with the concerned authorities.

Suppose a higher tax is deducted at source. The total tax to be paid would not increase, instead the individual will have to look for adjusting the deducted tax amount. For some people, this will take place only at the time of filing tax return, especially for a salaried people who might not have any additional tax burden to adjust the deducted amount. In such a situation, the tax return will show that a refund is due but this will take place only at the end of the financial year.

There can be quicker action if the individual has to pay some advance tax and this would be the case for professionals, salaried individuals with additional or other income. In this case, the adjustment will come earlier because they will pay the reduced amount of advance tax on the income after adjusting for the higher TDS made and hence need not wait till the year-end.

Source:Financial Express

IAF’s first forward post in 30 years

Tuesday , April 6 , 2010
IAF first forward post in 30 years

SUJAN DUTTA

New Delhi, April 5: The Indian Air Force will open its first fully equipped Forward Operating Base (FOB) in more than 30 years at Phalodi in Rajasthan tomorrow, about 100km from the border with Pakistan, drawing attention not only to air defence gaps but also to the tardy pace of infrastructure- building in the armed forces.

Phalodi is on the national highway between Jaisalmer, which is a forward base where full squadrons are not deployed permanently, and the South West Air Command headquarters in Jodhpur.

“Phalodi will fill a crucial gap in our air defence in the western sector,” IAF spokesperson Wing Commander Tarun Singha said today.

Across the border opposite Phalodi to the northwest are two major Pakistani military bases in Bahawalpur and Rahimyar Khan. Air force station Phalodi is set to become operational a decade after the government approved its formation in April 2000.

Phalodi will be the sixth airbase in Rajasthan. The other five were built in the colonial period before 1947 — but have been upgraded — for the Royal Indian Air Force in Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Bikaner, Suratgarh and Uttarlai (Barmer). Rajasthan (or Rajputana) was not the focus of military operations by the British before 1947 because the border here was drawn only at the time of Partition.

When Air Chief Marshal Pradeep Vasant Naik opens the Phalodi base tomorrow, he will expect that it will be the first in a series of inaugurals he has to make. The IAF has nearly 70 airbases across the country. The force has taken up an infrastructure- modernisation programme that has been limping.

As part of the programme, five advance landing grounds in the Northeast opposite the China border are being upgraded. Last September, the IAF opened the Nyoma base, also near the China border in Ladakh, and before that two more in Daulat Beg Oldie and Fukche. But in none of these landing grounds can the IAF deploy its assets permanently.

Unlike them, the base in Phalodi is being equipped for two full squadrons (about 40 aircraft) of fighter planes. The aircraft likely to be based in Phalodi would be MiG 21 Bisons that have limited combat power (such as shorter sorties because they cannot be refuelled in mid-air) compared with the more modern aircraft (such as the Sukhoi). The MiG 21 Bisons are tasked for air defence and interception of enemy aircraft, and MiG 29 aircraft are used for combat air patrol and escort duties.

Salary accounts to attract 25 per cent more interest

Salary account holders could see their interest income rise by up to 25 per cent on the back of a new RBI rule from this month, under which banks will compute 3.5 per cent savings interest on daily basis instead of taking the lowest deposit during a month, Crisil Ratings said on Monday.

Crisil said the new method of interest computation will increase the effective interest rate on savings balances, particularly for salary account holders.
"It is estimated that for a salary account holder with a minimum savings balance between 1-2 times of the monthly salary, the increase in interest income will be between 10 and 25 per cent," it said.
The new computation method has taken effect from April 1, 2010. Earlier, banks gave interest of 3.5 per cent on savings accounts on the basis of the least deposit in an account between the 10th and the last day of each month.
The interest is credited in the account twice a year, in March and September.
As for impact on banks, Crisil said the cost of deposit for them will increase by 10-20 basis points (100 bps = 1 per cent), depending on the share and pattern of the current and savings accounts (CASA).
"This will not materially impact their profitability or lead to any significant change in the share of low-cost deposits, that is CASA in the banking system," it added.
Crisil said, however, that the impact is expected to be higher for banks that have a dominant share of salary accounts with highly fluctuating balances.
At the end of February, all the commercial banks had a total deposit of over Rs 44 lakh crore, including savings, current and fixed deposits. The country's largest lender State Bank of India has over 1.56 crore savings bank account holders.
Crisil said the average CASA levels in the domestic banking system stood at 33 per cent, with savings deposits accounting for 22 per cent as of March 2009.
But it added, "The share of savings deposits is estimated to have increased to 25 per cent as on December 2009, which would translate into an increase of 2-4 per cent in CASA levels by March 31, 2020."
While announcing the annual monetary policy for 2009-10 unveiled last April, the Reserve Bank had said, "payment of interest on savings accounts by scheduled commercial banks would be calculated on a daily product basis with effect from April 1, 2010."

Stop treating army men like 'beggars', SC to Government

The Supreme Court has slammed the union government for treating army personnel like "beggars" in respect of emoluments and pension and asked the authorities to adopt a more "humane approach" towards those bravely defending the country's borders.
"If a person goes to any part of Delhi and sits for begging, he will earn Rs 1000 every day and you are offering a pittance of Rs 1000 per month for a man who fought for the country in the high altitudes and whose arm was amputated?
"Is this the way you treat those brave army officers? It is unfortunate that you are treating them like beggars," a bench of Justices Markandeya Katju and A K Patnaik said in verbal comments while passing the order.
The apex court passed the order dismissing the Centre's appeal challenging a Punjab and Haryana High Court direction to pay higher pension to C S Siddu, a Short Commissioned Officer whose right arm had to be amputated due to an accident while on duty at the high altitudes on November November 21, 1970.
"The army personnel are bravely defending the country even at the cost of their lives and we feel they should be treated in a better and more humane manner by government authorities, particularly, in respect of their emoluments, pension and other benefits," the bench said in an order.
There was an element of drama in the court when Additional Solicitor General Parag Tripathi pleaded with the court not to use "strong words" in the order like "beggars," "niggardly" "miserly", following which the bench dropped them from the written order.
"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,( Sidhu) who was posted at a high altitude field area and met with an accident during discharge of his duties was granted a meagre pension. This is a pittance (about Rs 1000) per month plus D.A.
"If this is the manner in which the army personnel are treated, it can only be said that it is extremely unfortunate, " the bench however, noted in its written order.

8% DA for Central Govt. Employees & Pensioners

The government on Friday increased the dearness allowance for
central government employees and pensioners by eight percentage points to compensate for price rise.
The increase is in accordance with the accepted formula based on the
recommendations of the Sixth Central Pay commission, Union information and broadcasting minister Ambika Soni told reporters after a meeting of the Union Cabinet here.
The increase would be eight per cent over the existing rate of 27 per
cent of basic pay or pension.
The additional installment of dearness allowance would be released with effect from January this year.

Compliance of new pensionary benefits to be time-bound

Notwithstanding the lethargy shown by our Record Offices, PAOs, PDAs and PCDA(P) in revising pensionary awards whenever announced, the Govt has made it clear in no uncertain terms that the new pension tables would be implemented within a period of 3 months from date of issuance.
It may not be out of context to point out that some post-2006 retirees are till date waiting for revised pension in accordance with 6th CPC implementation letters. In fact, many of our post-2006 retirees are still drawing pension in accordance with 5th CPC scales which speaks volumes of the inertia on part of the authorities involved in the process. The delay is inexcusable in this time and age of computerisation.
Pre-2006 retirees may also send in a complaint to the concerned PDA with a copy to the Records Office and PCDA(P) if the pension is not revised by 10-06-2010.
Also be very careful in perusing the tables since there are 135 in all. I would request all the ex-airmen to kindly facilitate the circulation of these modalities amongst the masses especially in areas where the passage of information is not very smooth.

Lt Gen Raj Kadyan’s (Chairman IESM) Message about OROP

Dear Colleagues,

Just to recapitulate, the Cabinet Secretary’s Committee had made seven recommendations. Out of these the main one that affected some 12 lac ESM was at Serial (i) and it read ‘To bring pre 10.10.1997 PBOR pensioners on par with post 10.10.1997 pensioners’. The government machinery had been taking unreasonably long in implementing it. As reported in the Press, the government orders for its implementation have now been issued on 08 Mar 2010. Any statement made in the Parliament earlier in the week, claiming that it had been effected, did not fit facts.

OROP has still not been granted. The IESM will therefore, continue with its struggle to keep the pressure on the government. The next action of depositing medals on 14 March 2010 will continue as planned, despite some motivated reports that it might be called off.

The benefits announced by the government though short of our main demand, are a welcome development for the pre 2006 JCOs, NCOs and men. This has been possible and OROP has come on the national radar screen, primarily due the notable efforts and contribution made by the following:

· All the ESM who have been toiling relentlessly to keep the heat on.

· All the media, politicians and others for pursuing our interests. This includes Mr LK Advani, who pushed for OROP in the discussion in the House, Mr Tarlochan Singh, MP (Independent) who raised the question in Rajya Sabha and took on the RM in debate on 5 March 2010, Mr Rajiv Chandrasekhar, MP who has consistently supported the IESM and who is all set for making a Special Mention of OROP in the Rajya Sabha.

The IESM is determined to continue its fight for justice. However, we have to be mindful of the fact that for us means are no less important than the end. We must avoid resort to methods for which our successors may have to avoid looking the society straight in the eye.  Best regards,

Lt Gen (Emeritus) Raj Kadyan, PVSM, AVSM, VSM

Chairman IESM

262, Sector-17A
Gurgaon- 122 001
Tele: 91+124-4015262
+919811226676

Pension of Pre 01-01-2006 PBORs enhanced

Improvement in the pension of Pre 01-01-2006 PBORs which was announced in July 2009 has been notified by the Government of India. Vide Government of India, Ministry of Defence letter No. PC10 (1)/2009-D (Pen/Pol) dated 08-03-2010. You can download the letter by clicking the following link.

The new scales for pre-2006 PBOR have been published / notified and can be downloaded and accessed by clicking here.

Story of a Fauji

Last night Sleeping I (Fauji ) died... or so it seemed,
Then I went to heaven
But only in my dream
Up there St Peter met me
Standing at the Pearly Gates,
He said, "I must check your record...
Please stand here and wait."
He turned and said "Your record
Is covered with terrible flaws,
On earth I see you rallied
For every losing cause."
I see that you drank alcohol,
smoked and partied too,
Fact is, you've done everything
A good person should never do.
We can't have people like you up here....
Throughout your life all you did was hear,
You carried out orders without pausing to think.
You never asked for instructions in ink..
Then he read the last of my record
Took my hand and said, "Come in."
You stood in isolated places and shivered alone
You left your kith, kin, hearth and home
You come from an unresponsive, ungrateful nation
You were denied your rights by every Pay Commission
He led me up to the Chief of Heaven ...
"Take him in and treat him well",
He has served in the Indian Military ...
He's done his time in hell!!!

Indian Air Force tests war readiness close to Pakistan border

Fighter jets of the Indian Air Force (IAF) pounded mock enemy bunkers close to the Pakistan border on Sunday in a symbolic show of air power at a time when the two nuclear-armed rivals are trying to improve relations.

The exercise was watched by military attaches from about 30 countries but not Pakistan and China, neighbours who would be keen to take a look at India's military firepower.

It follows the first official talks between India and Pakistan since the militant attacks in Mumbai in 2008.

The talks ended with an agreement to keep in touch, signalling relations remain fraught despite a desire to reopen a dialogue that India suspended after the Mumbai killings.

"This is not just a firepower demonstration but a clear message about what the Indian Air Force is capable of," said Commodore Uday Bhaskar, a New Delhi-based strategic affairs expert. "It is a message to the neighbours."

Tensions between India and Pakistan are a problem by themselves but the stakes have risen further with their roles in the war in Afghanistan.

In Sunday's war games, planes including Sukhois and MiG 21s, roared through the sky, bombing simulated enemy targets including militant training camps and bunkers.

President Pratibha Patil and Defence Minister A.K. Antony watched as targets were hit with bombs and rockets, raising huge balls of fire and dust in the deserts of Pokhran, the site of India's nuclear testing facility.

Defence officials said the exercise would test the IAF's ability at precision bombing of militant camps, particularly those behind enemy lines.

India accuses Pakistan of letting militant groups use its territory to train and launch attacks on India, such as the Mumbai raid that killed 166 people.

IAF Fire Power Demonstration at Pokharan on 28th February 2010

In a first ever display of its precision strike capability by night, a mammoth fire power demonstration (FPD), codenamed ‘Vayu Shakti-2010’, showcasing the operational capabilities of IAF by day, dusk and night will be held at the sprawling Chandan Air-to-Ground Range, Pokharan on February 28.

The FPD will demonstrate the day and night employability of air power by frontline fighter aircraft of the IAF including Su-30 MKI, Mirage-2000, Jaguar, Mig-21 and Mig-29. The transport aircraft include AN-32, Embraer and IL-76, while Mi-17 1V and Mi-35 attack helicopters will constitute the rotary wing ingredients.

For the first time AWACS will be used to monitor the mammoth exercise while an unmanned aerial vehicle will stream live video images of the target destruction. In addition to the 65 aircraft participating from all IAF Commands, 30 standby aircraft in air and an equal number on ground will make it one of the biggest participation by IAF aircraft in any such FPD ever.

Mock radar sites, tanks, marshalling yards, terrorist camps, runway, BMP (infantry fighting vehicles), blast pens and convoys are among few of the targets that pilots will seek to destroy. Para-drop and troop insertion of Garud - IAF’s Special Forces to neutralize a terrorist camp will also be on display.

The other attractions will include aerobatics display by Surya Kirans and Sarang, display by IAF sky diving team - Akash Ganga and renditions by IAF Symphonic Orchestra.

The FPD is a collective display of skills and accuracy in weapon delivery by pilots at the end of their training year. The exercise also aids commanders and planners to gain better insight into the potential and deployment capabilities of aerial weapons.

IAF’s ALH Dhruv Crash-lands in Jaisalmer

An Advanced Light Helicopter 'Dhruv' of the Indian Air Force 
crash-landed yesterday in Rajasthan's Jaisalmer district while rehearsing for the 'Vayu Shakti' air power show being held there today.
The helicopter was part of the Sarang Helicopter Display Team of the IAF and was rehearsing for tomorrow's air show, when the incident occurred, IAF officials said here.
"Both pilots are safe after they had to make a controlled crash-landing
due to loss of power in the chopper," they added. The IAF has ordered a Court of Inquiry to look into the reasons behind the incident, the
officials said.
In 2005, the entire ALH Dhruv fleet had been grounded for several months after a similar incident in Andhra Pradesh and the subsequent probe had found a fault with the tail rotor blades of the choppers.
On whether the display team comprising four ALH Dhruvs will take part in the air show tomorrow, for which the president and the defence minister are also coming, they said, "Sarang's participation is not yet cancelled."
This is the fifth incident involving the helicopter since 2004 when one
of the choppers being operated by the Royal Nepal Army suffered a hard landing. In October 2009, an ALH Dhruv of the Ecuadorian Air Force crashed during display manoeuvres at the Mariscal Sucre International Airport there.
After the formation of Sarang team in 2003, this is the second accident
involving its Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL)-built Dhruv helicopters.In the first incident on February 2, 2007, one of the choppers crashed in Bangalore killing its co-pilot during rehearsals before the Aero India show.
All the three Services along with the state governments operate the
helicopter and it has been exported to various countries including
Nepal, Ecuador, Mauritius, Maldives and Israel.

Pilot Killed in MIG-27 Crash

In yet another crash in IAF, a MiG-27 fighter went down near
Siliguri in West Bengal on Tuesday afternoon, killing the pilot, Wing Commander Aswal.
The MiG-27 is a `swing wing' aircraft and the over 100 of them in IAF
combat fleet were hardly flown in 2005-2006 after it was found that
their R-29 engines were causing a large number of accidents.
With the MiG-27 fleet undergoing an upgrade since then, IAF actually
plans to operate these fighters well into the next decade, even though
they are ageing, because they constitute an important element of its
strike fleet.
The number of IAF fighter squadrons, of course, is itself down to just
32-33 from even the `authorised strength' of 39.5 squadrons. IAF will
achieve its desired squadron strength of 42 only after 2020.
From 1971-72 to 2003-04, IAF's consolidated average rate stood at 1.09
accidents per 10,000 hours of flying, roughly translating into the loss
of 23 aircraft and the death of 10-14 pilots every year.
The crash rate did come down dramatically to around 0.27 accidents per
10,000 hours of flying, with an over 50% reduction in crashes after
2003-04. But the number of crashes seem to be going up once again now.
The aging MiG variants, which constitute the bulk of India's combat
fleet, have, of course, been the main culprits. The `highly-demanding'
MiG-21s, in particular, have a horrifying track-record.
Of the 793 single-engined MiG-21s inducted into IAF since 1963, well
over 330 have been lost in accidents. The problem has been compounded by
shoddy maintenance, poor quality control of spares and inadequate
training to rookie pilots.