How many of our leaders, political or otherwise, have a son or a daughter in the Forces, that they would ever fathom where the shoe pinches? When one daughter of a neta was kidnapped, the entire government machinery was subverted to release terrorists to get her safe release. When it comes to making provision for the pay and pension of soldiers who are committed to lay down their lives for the country, every paisa is begrudged on the grounds: “ Why do we need the Army?”
Leave alone make provision for their pay and pension, no babu or neta has ever moved forward to bring back the prisoners of war who are rotting in Pakistani jails for decades. None of them have a neta or a babu for a relative, you see. At the time of the Kargil war, lakhs of rupees were paid to the next of kin of the soldiers who laid down their lives in the face of the enemy. There are still many survivors and families of the brave of previous wars, struggling for survival in total anonymity, for who will take up their cause?
Meanwhile, while the soldier serves in the most difficult of terrains, in all manner of climes, surrounded by mountains, forests, glaciers or even mines, the babus sit in their air conditioned offices and conferences halls to pontificate on military pay and pensions, how many PCOs or Paan shops may be allotted to those who survive the loss of limbs in the field.
Has anyone ever examined the fortunes of the IAS Babus and those of their offspring; how were those offspring educated and then employed etc. For every babu offspring who gets into the top schools in India, how many offspring of Fauji officers make it? How many hours of work do babus actually put in between their elevenses, chai breaks, gossip session and so called seminars and workshops which have produced a Mighty Little in taking the country forward.
The unfortunate part is that the soldiers have no forum for venting their grievances. If anyone speaks up at the Darbar, believe me, he will never be heard off again. In the case of the Sixth Pay Commission, it was left to retired officers to take up cudgels on behalf of the serving personnel which cannot speak out.
What of the grievances of the retired personnel? In Gujarat, they were promised 16 acres of land each. A handful got that land and the rest ran from pillar to post to emerge empty handed. Neither the babu nor the senior officer wants to touch on this problem. Or the shortages of housing, the impoverishment of the large majority; they get by pointing fingers at the few who have been caught with their hands in the till. How many corrupt Army men have you heard of and how do those compare with the number of corrupt bureaucrats?
How much more do we add before resting our case before the Committee which has been set up to examine the recommendations of the Sixth Pay Commission.
Kussam Choppra
Kusum Choppra has been Gujarat correspondent for venerable publications like The Week, Rajasthan Patrika, Current and Maharashtra Herald (now merged into Sakal), apart from writing for a number of other publications, such as liberal magazines like Opinion and Freedom First. Earlier this year, five of her short stories made her a published author in the anthology called “CURTAINS stories by nine women”, published by Unison Publications, Bangalore. Born a Sindhi (Dolly Khemlani), married to a Punjabi, now a retired army officer who is a senior TV man......both of them ended up as journalists!
Full article at....A Case for the Soldier by Kusum Choppra
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