IESM: "One Rank One Pension" Ploy of Successive Governments

Friends,

I give below, two extracts from e-mails received on the IESM e-net. The first is a Tribune article dated 25 May 1999 by RAdm Satyendra Singh and the second is a very recent Press Statement by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The first shows how when the BJP-led NDA government was in power, they made the right noises by Defence Minister Fernandes "okaying" OROP, but did nothing to implement it even though they had enough time and more. The second shows how the BJP is making political mileage out of the present UPA government's insistence (totally idiotic and myopic, in my view, considering the integrity of the Union of India) that OROP is neither feasible nor necessary.

The bottom line as far as our IESM policy is concerned, should be that none of the political parties can be trusted, and we can get our due of justice and equity only if we fight on simply as IESM without any leanings towards one political party or another, as we have been while in service. The common factor is, of course, the bureaucracy, which has seen to it (regardless of which party or coalition is in power) that OROP has not been sanctioned by government. May I request that this letter be circulated for info of others.

Wishing you and yours a very happy New Year 2009 with good health and fitness, and wishes for success in gaining OROP in 2009.
In solidarity,
Maj Gen S.G.Vombatkere (Retd)
Issue of one rank, one pension: Nine years ago
One rank, one pension blues: Decade ago
Sonia calls for one-rank-one-pension: Six years ago
Press Statement issued by Shri Jaswant Singh Leader of the Opposition (Rajya Sabha)
Original copy of Shri Jaswant Singh's letter to the Raksha Mantri