Handbook for Military Pensioners

Dear Sir,
I will request you to get it published in Report My Signals blog. It maybe useful to veterans other than Signals.
With Regards
ID Sharma
Dear ID,
My congratulations for producing the Hand Book. Pse keep doing such things to help the veterans. We have to help ourselves and we have many like you who are doing yeoman's service.
Best wishes.
Sincerely, Harbhajan Singh
Handbook for Pensioners
Handbook for Pensioers

Bureaucrats call the shots: Widows Pension remains Static

Dear Colleagues,
Regarding non-enhancement of widows’ pension. You may recall the reply I had received to my letter that I had written to the PM. The Adjutant General (PS-5) has also sent me a reply vides their letter B/39027/29(5)/MOD/AG/PS-5 dated 20 Aug 2010. It reads:
RDRESSAL OF GRIEVQANCE
1. Reference your letter dated 15 Jul 10 addressed to Hon’ble Prime Minister of India with a copy to Hon’ble Defence Minister.
2. It is to intimate that Govt. letter dated 08 Mar 10 was issued implementing recommendation of the Cabinet Secretary’s Committee on ‘One Rank One Pension and Related Issues’. No recommendations in respect of family pensioners was made by the Committee.
(VK Gupta)
Dy Dir
AG/PS-5
For Adjutant General
Copy to:-
MOD/D/(PGS)- For Information wrt your ID No. 237/PMO/PGC/2010 dated 12 Aug 10.

It may be noted from the letter No quoted in ‘copy to’ that the contents have come down from the PMO. Interestingly, the political leadership willy-nilly accepts that the bureaucrats run the show and call the shots. What better proof of the tail wagging the tiger?
Best regards,
Lt Gen (Emeritus) Raj Kadyan, PVSM, AVSM, VSM
Chairman IESM

Free Rations for Troops: How MOD was bribed?

Lt Gen Krishnaswami Balaram PVSM (Retd)
A DAUGHTER’S TRIBUTE

The many stories that are associated with Dad, the numerous tributes pouring forth from the people who have known him have made me add my personal very favourite tribute to him.

How did Entitled Rations become Authorised to the Defence Services?
At the time Dad was the Adjutant General two of the major issues he handled were the Fourth Pay Commission and getting Authorised rations or Free rations (as it was then called) for the Defence Services.

When the file for the Free rations was ready the General sent it across to the Ministry for approval and signature. The file came back with some observations. Duly rectified the General sent it back. Again the file came back with some fresh observations. The General made the necessary corrections and sent it back. When this had occurred a few times the General got suspicious and sent one of his officers across to the Ministry to find out exactly what was needed to get the file through.

The officer came back and told him that one of the officers in the Ministry who was vital for getting the file signed had a daughter in the Army Medical Corps who was posted in MH X and he wanted her posted to Delhi. “ Is that all?” said the General incredulously. Promptly he picked up the phone and called the DGMS (Army). Giving him the details of the Lady MO he told him “ issue the posting order and a copy of the same to be on my table by the afternoon”.

A little later the DGMS (Army) called him back and told him “ Sir, this lady has been posted to MH X not even three months back. How can I issue another posting order for Delhi?”

To this the General replied “ To you it is issuing the posting order of one Lady Medical Officer. To me it is a question of getting through Free rations for the entire Defence Forces. Issue the posting order and send me a copy within this hour.”

The posting order was issued. A copy of the same was with the General within the hour. The file with the posting order was sent to the Ministry. The file was processed rapidly. Signed and returned to the General.

Free Rations were then authorized and issued to the Defence Forces.

Dad often looked at me and with a twinkle in his say “ Lady Medical Officers………God Bless them!!!!!!!!”
Lt Col (Dr) Radha J Joneja (Retd)