Kargil Vijay Diwas - Walkathon Starts at 0830

Dear Veterans,

The nation will commemorate 13th anniversary of Kargil Divas marking India's victory over the Pakistani intruders who attempted to infiltrate India in 1999. Indian armed forces drove out Pakistani intruders who were occupying Kargil and Drass. But the victory came at a heavy price as 527 soldiers lost their lives and over 1300 were injured.

To commemorate the historic day and to honour the 527 brave martyrs of India, Flags of Honour Foundation will pay homage to the men and women who laid their lives for the nation. Flags of Honour Foundation has organized a Walkathon – a walk by citizens to pay homage to the martyrs will be flagged off by Former Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde at the Victoria statue and will walk through Cubbon, Ambedkar Veedhi, Raj Bhavan Road before reaching National Military Memorial Park on the Chowdaiah Road ( opposite to Nehru Planetarium.)

More than 600 citizens including school and college students will participate in this walk that will conclude at the National Military Memorial.

We request you to please join the Walkathon and pay your respects to the brave who have laid down their lives for us. Please find attached a poster detailing out the events.

Venue: Victoria Statue, Cubbon Park

Date: 26th July, 2012

Time: 8:30 am

A Detailed TV Panel discussion on pay, status and pension related issues

Detailed TV Panel discussion on pay, status and pension related issues affecting defence personnel and veterans.

Panellists were Generals Surjit Singh and SPS Vains, and Maj Navdeep Singh was recorded and telecast yesterday i.e, 21^st July 2012, by Day and Night News. To watch the programme please click the following links.

Part-1: Click here

Part-2: Click here

Result of Meeting held on 18th July for One Rank One Pension

On 18th July 2012, the three service chiefs, led by Admiral Nirmal Verma, Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee (CoSC) met with a high-powered Committee of Secretaries constituted by the Prime Minister to resolve anomalies in the implementation of the Sixth Pay Commission award for the Armed Forces.

Although a total of 39 anomalies have been identified by the three services since 2008, they have decided to concentrate on some core issues that directly affect both serving and retired armed forces personnel.

The issues are:

Fixing common pay scales for all JCOs and ORs

Source: NDTV

• Grant of NFU (non-functional upgradation) status to commissioned officers
• Correcting difference in rank pay of commissioned officers
• Extending the HAG+ (Higher administrative Grade Plus) scale to all three star officers
• Granting One-Rank-One-Pension to retired personnel

There have been strong demands from ex-servicemen and from acting servicemen for One-Rank-One-Pay. And to push for their demands further, the three Service chiefs, led by Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee, Naval chief Admiral Nirmal Verma, along with his colleagues, Chief of Air Staff ACM, NAK Browne and Army Chief General Bikram Singh gave a detailed presentation to the Committee of Secretaries on Wednesday.

The six-member committee, comprising the Cabinet Secretary with the Defence Secretary, Secretary Ex-Servicemen Welfare, Secretary DoPT, Expenditure Secretary and Principal Secretary to PM, as members was set up by the Prime Minister after a Rajya Sabha panel last year recommended granting One Rank One Pension to the retired defence personnel. The government has asked the committee to submit its report by August 8.

There is a buzz in the corridors of power that the Prime Minister wants to make a grand announcement from the ramparts of the Red Fort on August 15 and therefore the deadline of August 8!

For the uninitiated, the One-Rank-One-Pay scheme implies that uniform pension be paid to the armed forces personnel retiring in the same rank with the same length of service irrespective of their date of retirement, and any future enhancement in the rates of pension be automatically passed on to past pensioners.

But the issue that has upset and angered serving defence personnel is NFU.

For those not in uniform it needs a bit of an explanation.

Buckling under pressure from Group A organised Services under the Central Government like Border Roads Organisation, Military Engineering Services, Postal Services, the Sixth Pay Commission gave them a special concession.

It allowed the officers in these services to be placed in a grade pay scale equivalent to an IAS officer two years behind that particular IAS batch. For example if the 1992 batch of the IAS officer got placed in the Joint Secretary grade in 2012, all Group A organised officers of the 1990 batch would automatically get the pay and allowance equivalent to the 1992 IAS batch, irrespective of the post and place they are serving in. That is the upgradation will be done on a ‘non-functional’ basis.

This has brought in huge functional problems in day-to-day affairs when military officers have to work in close coordination with MES Civil Officers, BRO Civil Officers, IPS Officers in BSF, CRPF, ITBP, Defence Accts (IDAS), Test Audit (IA&AS), Ordnance Factory Board etc, with whom Defence forces officers interact regularly, will now get the salary and grade pay of Joint Secretary/Major General (Grade Pay Rs. 10000/-) after 22 years of service, and will draw the pay of Additional Secretary to Government of India which is equal to a Lieutenant General (Grade Pay Rs. 12000/-) in 32 years of service whereas military officers senior to them in rank and service will get less grade pay at the same level of service thereby creating a functional disparity giving rise to insubordination and subtle non-compliance.

Military officials have pointed out that this has adversely affected organisational command and control in multi-cadre environment. It also led to lowering the status of Armed Forces Officials vis-a-vis organized Group A officers and IPS Officers. Organized Group A and IPS Officers reach HAG (Higher Administrative Grade) Scale at 32 years while only 0.2 per cent of Armed Forces Officers can ever reach that level.

With over 97 per cent Armed Forces Officers retiring in the Grade Pay of 8700, their exclusion from the NFU is seen as grossly unfair. This differential not only disturbs financial parity, it pushes down the Defence services in status as even direct recruit officers of Group B services attain a better pay and promotional avenue and manage to reach the level of Joint Secretary/Major General before retiring.

Both the OROP and granting the NFU status to Armed Forces officials is not going to be expensive either.

According to calculations done by the military, the annual outgo for granting One -Rank-One-Pension to the approximately 21 lakh ex-servicemen would not be more than Rs. 1300 crore. Similarly the NFU status, if granted, will cost the exchequer a mere Rs. 70 crore annually but will go a long way in restoring the pride and status of the armed forces’ officers.

The other core issues are minor in comparison but important nevertheless.

Committee on defence pay and pension anomalies, some additional issues

On the last blogpost concerning the committee constituted on the directions of the Prime Minister, some have shown utter discontentment and lack of any hope from the said working group. Some organisations have rejected the group even before the initiation of its functioning. While the distrust vis-à-vis some certain of bureaucracy is understandable to an extent, painting the entire set-up and also the serving military community as being ‘selfish’ and concerned about its own needs and requirements would not be in order.

And is this approach correct? Needless to say, the formation of the committee is a much welcome step and the credit for it goes to the Pay cells of the three services, mainly the Army Pay Cell, to have adequately highlighted at the right places the requirement of resolution of many pertinent anomalies. It may be pointed out here that earlier the formation of an ‘anomalies committee’ had been summarily rejected by the MoD but the Pay Cells and the current senior incumbents of the AG’s branch still managed to convince the Raksha Mantri of the requirement of redressal of these anomalies.

There is some deficit under the present circumstances and some loose ends that need the attention of the PMO, the Cabinet Secretary and the Services, some of these are :

(a) No stake holder is a part of the committee. Since the committee has been granted the authority to co-opt additional members, the thrust should be on the request to have minimum of four members from the military committee – one serving, each from Army, Navy and Air force and one veteran. It may be recalled that similar committees for civilian employees function democratically with a 'staff side' and 'official side'.

(b) When a Parliamentary Committee has already looked into the demand of One Rank One Pension (OROP) and recommended the same, would it be ethical for a committee of bureaucrats to examine the same demand? Wouldn’t this send a wrong message? Who is more important to the PM, the voice of elected representatives of a democracy or a body of career bureaucrats?

(c) There are many other important anomalies that remain unaddressed. How will those be addressed and by whom? Who decided that these were the only 9 issues that required redressal? Who picked up these 9 from the long list of ‘core issues’? One such very important issue is the issue of broad-banding of disability percentages which affects 80% of all disabled veterans in India and which has led to a spate of unwanted litigation, this issue is the most important stand-alone subject today which requires serious attention rather than rounds of litigation.

(d) Though despite internal inertia by lower echelons of the MoD, the committee has been established, but would it function on its own merits with proper application of mind by the members with independent inputs invited from all concerned or would it again fully depend upon the Pension and Pay/Services Wings of the MoD which have been at the forefront of stonewalling and putting up misleading notes to confuse the top leadership.

Some questions remain unanswered and the constitution of the committee is not perfect as far as its members are concerned, but I would request the defence community to be optimistic on the subject and not jump the gun till the time the recommendations are submitted. Also the Services HQ are at this time tirelessly working towards the objective and need our encouragement in this regard, not negative vibes.

Let us keep our fingers crossed, be optimistic and hope for the best. Still otherwise, this committee is not the last word even if does not entirely meet the expectations of the military community.

Courtesy: Maj Navdeep Singh

Hawk eye on Malacca strait

Dear Member, an interesting article is enclosed below, kind courtesy Cdr Carl Gomes, a veteran from Bangalore.

Hawk eye on Malacca strait

New Delhi, July 9: India is set to commission its latest military post named Baaz (hawk) on its south-eastern fringe in the Bay of Bengal to oversee a sea lane through which a quarter of the world’s trade passes, an Indian Navy source told The Telegraph on Monday. In April this year, the navy had upgraded its detachment in the Lakshadweep Islands in the Arabian Sea to the level of a full-fledged base. Named the INS Dweeprakshak, the base is in the island of Kavaratti. Together, the INS Dweeprakshak and the naval air station, Baaz, are set to be India’s western and eastern-most sentinels. But it is the Baaz that is of greater significance to the world because its location gives it a hawk eye over the Straits of Malacca after US defence secretary Leon Panetta said in Delhi last month that its military was “re-balancing” to the Asia-Pacific. Campbell Bay, where Baaz has come up, is closer to Indonesia than to the Indian mainland. To be opened this month-end by the outgoing navy chief, Admiral Nirmal Verma, whose mission it has been, naval air station (NAS) Baaz will be based in Campbell Bay at the southern tip of Great Nicobar island. Spread over nearly 70 hectares, Baaz will eventually be capable of turning around all kind of fighter and transport-troop carrier aircraft. NAS Baaz sits astride the Six-Degree Channel between Nicobar and the coast of Aceh that is known to sailors around the world as the mouth of the Straits of Malacca. The strait connects the Indian and Pacific Oceans and the economies of China, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore are largely dependent on it. Last month, a Hercules C-130 aircraft, newly acquired by the Indian Air Force, flew non-stop for 10 hours from the base at Hindon, east of Delhi, to Campbell Bay. That was a trial sortie that indicated that operations were about to begin at NAS Baaz. Battered by the tsunami of 2004, Campbell Bay, with its fragile ecosystem, is now set to become one of India’s most strategic forward operating air bases. It now has a 3,000ft runway that is likely to be extended and will eventually be able to handle airlifters like the IL-76 and the larger Globemaster III that the IAF has contracted. Fighter aircraft can operate from the base even now but, with its commissioning as a full-fledged station, it extends their reach. Indian air surveillance in and around the Bay of Bengal, apart from the coastline, has depended on sorties from Port Blair — about 550 nautical miles north of Campbell Bay, roughly the distance from Delhi to Bhopal — that made it difficult to sustain the watch over longer periods of time. With the commissioning of Baaz, Indian military aircraft would now be able to spend more time in surveillance of not only the Straits of Malacca but also the Straits of Sunda and Lombok. China’s Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) rates its strategic interest in the Straits of Malacca on a par with the importance it gives to Taiwan. The commissioning of NAS Baaz on the southern tip of Great Nicobar island will be followed by an upgrade of NAS Shibpur at Diglipur on the northern tip of the Andamans.

Very Positive development: Finally, a time-bound committee to look into, and implement the resolution of anomalies affecting defence personnel and veterans

The defence community would be pleased to know that the Prime Minister’s office has directed the constitution of an anomalies committee to look into many vital anomalies affecting serving and retired personnel and also their families.

The best part of the directions signed this week is that the committee is to submit its recommendations within a month and the implementation of the accepted recommendations may also be announced on 15 August 2012, thereby marking a radical signal of positivity.

Though a chunk of the bureaucracy in the Ministry of Defence was not inclined to let any such committee come through, this has been possible due to multiple channels of Track-II diplomacy and the stellar efforts of the Chairman COSC and the Pay Cells of the three services which evoked direct response from the Raksha Mantri who then took it upon himself to get this committee approved from the Prime Minister personally and directly without being blinded by comments of lower bureaucracy of the MoD.

The only negative offshoot is that the committee does not have any serving or retired military member and that a proper consultative process was not initiated before identifying the anomalies which required immediate examination. Ideally, the stake-holders should have been a part of the process. However, the saving grace is that the committee has been granted the authority to co-opt any additional member if required. The Committee shall function under the Cabinet Secretary with the Defence Secretary, Secretary Ex-Servicemen Welfare, Secretary DoPT, Expenditure Secretary and Principal Secretary to PM, as members.

Howsoever we may view the development, many important issues such as Non-Functional Upgradation, enhancement of pensions of widows, One Rank One Pension, dual family pension, fixation of pay of Lt Cols/Cos/Brigs, enhancement of Grade Pays, universalisation of scales, grant of HAG+ to all Lt Gens, removal of pay anomalies of other ranks etc have been listed in the charter of the committee. Five anomalies concerning serving personnel and four concerning veterans and pensioners shall be taken up. One surprise (and actually infructuous) entry in the list of anomalies is that the committee would be looking into the issue whether a handicapped family pensioner could be granted family pension on marriage since as per the current interpretation, family pension to handicapped family pensioners is discontinued on marriage. However this issue already stands addressed by the Hon'ble AFT in the case of Vinod Kumar Vs UOI and the judgement also already stands implemented and hence the inclusion of this point in the committee seems totally redundant once it has been judicially adjudicated.

It is however surprising that while the PM had directed that the constitution of the committee may be publically announced, the same has not been done by the staff at MoD till date despite the fact that the directions were conveyed by special courier (by hand) to the MoD for immediate action by the PMO.

RIP - Sub Major (Hony Capt) Mohinder Singh, MVC

The War Decorated India
PRESS RELEASE
BRAVEST OF THE BRAVE PASSES AWAY

RIP - Sub Major (Hony Capt) Mohinder Singh, MVC

Sub Major (Hony Capt) Mohinder Singh, MVC passed away yesterday peacefully. His mortal remains were consigned to flames today. He was living in the Urban Estate at Patiala.

He was born on 03 January 1939 at village Sham Nagar in Amritsar district of Punjab.

Sub Major (Hony Capt) Mohinder Singh, MVC was enrolled on 03 January 1950 in 18th Battalion of the Punjab Regiment of Infantry.

Sub Major (Hony Capt) Mohinder Singh, MVC is survived by his wife Sardarni Gurmit Kaur and two sons: Mittarpal Singh & Charanjit Singh. His son, Mittar Pal Singh, can be contacted on mobile: 981583076

Subedar Mohinder Singh was commanding a platoon of a battalion of Punjab Regiment in an attack on a well-fortified enemy post supported by medium machine guns in the Kargil Sector. The attack was held up by enemy medium machine guns which were effectively bringing down a heavy volume of fire. He exhorted and inspired his men by personal example to maintain momentum of the attack. With utter disregard for his personal safety, he charged forward, destroyed one of the medium machine gun bunkers and inflicted casualties on the enemy in close combat. His personal example and gallantry so inspired his men as to ensure success of the attack.

Throughout, Subedar Mohinder Singh displayed conspicuous gallantry and leadership of a very high order and performed his duties beyond the call of duty.

For this act of valour he was awarded the Mahavir Chakra on 07 December 1971.

After retirement from the army Sub Major (Hony Capt) Mohinder Singh, MVC settled down at Patiala where he worked with the Punjabi University for some time as Security Officer.

Punjab, the state which has got the highest number of gallantry awards for a show of valour in the face of enemy, has lost another one of its Gallant Sainiks. Now the state is left with 12 living MVC awardees.

Punjabis have won 4 Param Vir Chakras, 48 Mahavir Chakras (plus two Bars) & 250 Vir Chakras (plus two bars). The total number of awards of the Vir Chakra series conferred in India since 1947 is as follows: PVC: 21, MVC 218 & VrC 1318 total: 1557.

This implies that Punjabis have won 19 % of PVCs, 22.9 % of MVCs, 18.96 % of VrCs awarded by the nation so far.

Condolence messages from the President, The War Decorated India, Brig Narinder Singh Sandhu, MVC, Brig Amarjit Singh Brar, VrC (Director Punjab), Brig Kuldip Singh Chandpuri, MVC, VSM (Director Punjab) & Capt Reet MP Singh, VrC were conveyed to the family.

The cremation ceremony was well attended. 18th Battalion the Punjab Regiment had sent a contingent under its Subedar Major in full military regalia. However, the presence of a Bugler to sound the Last Post was missed.

There also were men from a local unit carrying wreaths from the local Divisional Headquarters - in normal uniform.

Secretary General
The War Decorated India
303, Urban Estate“ I (B)
Patiala. Punjab 147002-04