ONE RANK ONE PENSION (OROP) & ISSUES OF CONCERN OF DEFENCE VETERANS NEEDING URGENT RESOLUTION

Dear Veterans,

Letter to Members of Parliament on the above subject dated 02 Nov 2019 is enclosed herewith for your information widest circulation please.

With Regards,
Jai Hind,
Yours Sincerely,
Maj Gen Satbir Singh, SM (Retd),
Advisor United Front of Ex Servicemen &
Chairman Indian Ex-Servicemen Movement (IESM)

Dated:  02 Nov 2019

“ONE RANK ONE PENSION (OROP) & ISSUES OF CONCERN OF DEFENCE VETERANS NEEDING URGENT RESOLUTION”

Dear Members of Parliament,

1.      We wish to bring to your notice that long pending demand of defence fraternity of OROP has not yet been implemented. Hon’ble Prime Minister and President of BJP Sh. JP Nadda have time and again stated at various forums that OROP has been implemented.  With grievously hurt feelings and anguish, we wish to inform you that such statements by our Hon’ble Prime Minister are of serious concern to us.  Had the OROP been implemented as per the definition stated by MoS Sh. Rao Inderjit Singh on 02 Dec 2014 in the parliament, the Ex Servicemen would not have been on the road across the country protesting for the non-implementation of OROP.  On 31 Oct 2019, Ex Servicemen have completed 1600 days of continuous Protest Movement executed peacefully with dignity, respect and in the best traditions of soldiering.

2.      There are serious anomalies in the Govt of India Min of Def Notification No 12 (I)/2014/D (Pen/Pol)-part –II dated 07 Nov 2015 wherein the Govt is purported to have implemented OROP.  The serious anomalies have been brought to the Notice of the Govt on numerous occasions, but these anomalies have not yet been rectified.  Ex-servicemen were forced to approach Hon’ble Supreme Court for grant of full OROP.  Hon’ble Supreme Court in its order dated 01 May 2019 (copy attached).  Asked the MoD to resolve the anomalies to the extent possible and the next date of hearing was to take place on 06 Aug 2019.  However, the Hon’ble judge hearing the case was busy in hearing Ram Mandir Case and our OROP case hearing was not listed.

3.      In the meantime we had a meeting with Hon’ble Raksha Mantri on 01 Jul 2019 and briefed him about Hon’ble Supreme Court order and requested for the rectification of the OROP anomalies. Hon’ble Raksha Mantri assured us for another meeting after a few days for the resolution of OROP anomalies; however, that meeting has not taken place even after writing to Hon’ble Raksha Mantri a number of times.

4.      During an Election Rally at Chandigarh President of BJP Sh. JP Nadda stated that his Govt had implemented OROP.  The same was denied by Ex-servicemen bodies. To add to our hurt feelings, Hon’ble Prime Minister on 19 Oct 2019 at Rewari in another Election Rally, again stated that his Govt had implemented OROP.  We wish to inform that this is far from truth.  OROP has not been implemented; what has been implement is One Time increase in Pension.  Unless the OROP anomalies are rectified, grant of Full OROP will remain unfulfilled.

5.       We also wish to inform you that equalization of pensions of defence personnel was due with effect from 01 Jul 2019 as per Govt Notification dated 07 Nov 2015, but the same has not yet been carried out. The Govt which had issued the notification has not honored its own order of equalization of Pensions after every five years which became due with effect from 01 Jul 2019. We had through a letter dated 03 Sep 2019 written to Hon’ble Raksha Mantri, copy to Hon’ble Prime Minister and three Chiefs and also forwarded the same letter to Secretary (ESW) requesting for immediate equalization of pensions as notified in Govt Notification dated 07 Nov 2015. MoD, instead of implementing equalization of pensions, ordered another committee whose recommendations have not been made public. The outcome of another, “One Man Judicial Committee (OMJC)” which submitted its report to the Govt on 26 Oct 2016 headed by Justice L. Narasimha Reddy, retired Chief Justice of Patna High Court has neither been made public nor implemented.

6.      We appeal to our elected representative, Hon’ble Members of Parliament to raise our issues of concern in the coming winter session and ask the Govt to grant Full OROP to the defence personnel, a demand which is long pending, though it had been accepted by both NDA and UPA Govts but not yet implemented. Our Hon’ble Member of Parliament, with anguish we wish to say that “any country which does not respect its soldiers is doomed to fail”.

Please grant Justice to Soldiers.

With Regards,
Jai Hind,
Yours Sincerely,
Maj Gen Satbir Singh,
SM (Retd), Advisor United Front of Ex Servicemen &
Chairman Indian Ex-Servicemen Movement (IESM)
Mobile: 9312404269, 01244110570
Email:satbirsm[@]gmail.com
(Source Via e-mail)

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