One Rank One Pension: Pay and Pension Grievances of Military

THURSDAY, AUGUST 30, 2012
One Rank One Pension: Pay and Pension Grievances of Military
As per PIB Release ID No. 87037 related matter again knocked in Rajya Sabha and same reply submitted by MoD, which was already submitted in Lok Sabha on 27th August [click here to see]. The full details of Lok Sabha query is also reproduced here:-
PIB Release 87037: Click here
Ministry of Defence 30-August, 2012
Committee to Look into Pay and Pension Grievances of Military
The Committee chaired by Cabinet Secretary is comprised of Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister; Defence Secretary; Secretary, Department of Expenditure; Secretary, Department of Ex-Servicemen's Welfare and Secretary, Department of Personnel and Training. Consequent to change in charge of the then Secretary, Department of Expenditure to Department of Revenue, Secretary, Department of Revenue has also been co-opted as a Member of the Committee. Chief of Naval Staff & Chairman, Chiefs of the Staff Committee made a presentation to the Committee. The Committee further interacted with all the Service Chiefs (Chief of Naval Staff & Chairman, Chiefs of the Staff Committee; Chief of Air Staff and Chief of Army Staff). The recommendations of the Committee have been submitted to the Prime Minister.
This information was given by Defence Minister Shri AK Antony in a written reply to Shri Arvind Kumar Singh and others in Rajya Sabha today.
**** Source Link: http://pib.nic.in/newsite/erelease.aspx?relid=87037 To see an interested guest article "Leave it to the experts" published by Hindustan Times **[Click here]**
Full details of Lok Sabha Q&A dated 27th Aug, 2012
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF DEFENCE
LOK SABHA
PAY AND PENSION MATTERS OF PERSONNEL
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 2514 by Shri M. B. RAJESH, GANESH SINGH, EKNATH MAHADEO GAIKWAD, N.S.V. CHITTHAN, ASADUDDIN OWAISI, NEERAJ SHEKHAR, ANAND PRAKASH PARANJPE, YASHVIR SINGH, KAPIL MUNI KARWARIYA, KHATGAONKAR PATIL BHASKARRAO BAPURAO, PARTAP SINGH BAJWA, MANICKA TAGORE & S. RAMASUBBU
Will the Minister of DEFENCE be pleased to state:-
(a) whether the Committee, recently constituted by the Government, to look into the pay and pension related matters of serving and retired defence personnel has submitted its report;
(b) if so, the composition of the Committee including the recommendations made by them in this regard;
(c) whether the Committee included the representatives of the three Services of the armed forces and also the Ex-servicemen and if not, the reasons therefor; and
(d) the steps being taken by the Government on the recommendations made by the Committee?
ANSWERED ON 27.08.2012
ANSWER by MINISTER OF DEFENCE (SHRI A.K. ANTONY)
(a) to (d): The Committee chaired by Cabinet Secretary is comprised of Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister; Defence Secretary; Secretary, Department of Expenditure; Secretary, Department of Ex-Servicemen’s Welfare and Secretary, Department of Personnel and Training. Consequent to change in charge of the then Secretary, Department of Expenditure to Department of Revenue, Secretary, Department of Revenue has also been co-opted as a Member of the Committee. Chief of Naval Staff & Chairman, Chiefs of the Staff Committee made a presentation to the Committee. The Committee further interacted with all the Service Chiefs (Chief of Naval Staff & Chairman, Chiefs of the Staff Committee; Chief of Air Staff and Chief of Army Staff). The recommendations of the Committee have been submitted to the Prime Minister.
Read more: Click here to read more

Leave it to the experts
August 29, 2012, Hindustan Times
First Published: 21:26 IST(29/8/2012)
The term 'civil-military relations' describes the relationship between civil society as a whole and the military organisations established to protect it. In all democracies, the military leadership is part of the decision-making process, especially on defence and national security issues. But not in India, where the bureaucracy is supreme despite the fact that it lacks the know-how on such issues. This results in chaos, communal disturbances and terrorist attacks from within and across the borders.
The chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC), Admiral Nirmal Verma, stated in an article that the crux of the problem lies in the fact that the service chiefs remain "non-persons" in the edifice of the government. The background to this anomaly is found in two volumes of business rules, issued under the constitutional powers of the president in 1961. They state that the responsibility for India's defence and its preparation has been vested in the defence secretary. The three service chiefs are not allocated any responsibilities by these rules.
Recently, the defence minister visited the troops deployed on the Line of Control (LoC) to assess their morale. He was shocked to learn that there was discontentment among the soldiers because they earn less than their counterparts in civil and paramilitary forces. The defence minister wrote to the prime minister suggesting that "things may take a bad turn" if a timely corrective action is not initiated.
Consequently, the prime minister, in his Independence Day address, announced the setting up of a committee to recommend reforms for the defence forces. The main issues being looked into by the committee include the elevation of all Lt-Gen rank officers to a higher pay scale, increased pension and the 'one rank one pension' (OROP) demand of ex-servicemen. It should be noted that the committee on OROP set up under cabinet secretary Ajit Seth was supposed to submit its report to the PM by August 8. But it has been delayed. Further, the six-member committee is composed only of babus and has no representatives from the armed services.
Previously, recommendations on OROP have been made by the three parliamentary committees on defence and one Rajya Sabha petition committee on OROP. But the PM still consults a committee of bureaucrats on the issue. The I-Day address of the prime minister will not amount to much because delays are expected from the bureaucracy. The defence forces may have to wait till the formation of the next government in 2014 to get their due - that is, if selfless and honest MPs are elected.
PK Vasudeva is a defence analyst and commentator
The views expressed by the author are personal
Leave it to the experts
Comment: The Babus have become Military Experts- since when? Only the Chinese can teach the Politicians and Babus the art of war!

Selecting Military's Top Brass: The present flawed system needs to be addressed

By Maj Gen Mrinal Suman
Indian Defence Issue: Net Edition | Date: 19 November, 2010

Indian armed forces have many unique organisational features. Most of them have been discussed frequently in public debates. One lesser known aspect is total lack of meritocracy in higher appointments. Though equally applicable to all the three services, further discussion shall be restricted to the Army for the ease of understanding the issue.

Quality of top military brass is too serious a matter to be left to the whims of service Chiefs.
As per the current system, a general cadre officer of the rank of Major General is approved to be a Lieutenant General (Lt Gen). The army has over 70 officers of the rank of Lt Gen in the general cadre at any time. Every Lt Gen with more than three years’ residual service becomes a Corps Commander.

Subsequently, on the basis of seniority they become Army Commanders in their own turn, provided they have two years’ residual service. The senior-most serving Army Commander gets appointed as the Chief of the Army Staff (Chief). As there is no selection beyond the rank of Lt Gen, all Lt Gens are considered fit to assume the appointment of Chief. Their inter-se seniority and age-wise placement in the hierarchy decides their future. Thus, at any given time there are over 70 officers who stand approved to head the Army.

Critics call such an arrangement as ‘auto-pilot ride’ - an army officer is required to prove his competence till he achieves the rank of Lt Gen. Thereafter, he rides auto-pilot and makes career advances purely on account of his date of birth. The services are perhaps the only organisation in the country which throws up top leadership solely on the basis of seniority. Merit ceases to play any role.

The wisdom of accepting the logic that every Corps Commander is fit to be the Chief is also questioned by many. A Corps Commander is a field commander of around 50,000 troops whereas a Chief wears multiple hats while heading 1.1 million-strong army. To equate the two appointments is highly untenable as leadership qualities required for a Corps Commander and a Chief can never be the same.

The spectacle of an Army Commander questioning his transfer to another command and two top ranking officers fighting in public for chairmanship of Delhi Gymkhana Club testify to the above.

The current system has two major drawbacks. First, the services are deprived of quality leadership. Many brilliant military officers fail to move up solely because of their unfavourable age-wise placement. In the absence of merit, mediocrity prevails. Indifferent quality of senior commanders can be attributed to seniority based promotions. The spectacle of an Army Commander questioning his transfer to another command and two top ranking officers fighting in public for chairmanship of Delhi Gymkhana Club testify to the above. Similarly, apathetic quality of leadership was also on display when Chiefs found it irksome to travel to Nilgiris to pay homage at the demise of a Field Marshal. Recent media reports have also highlighted the deficiencies of higher military leadership with regard to land dealings.

Secondly, the system lends itself to manipulation by smart functionaries and thus, perpetuates a regime of patronage. Every Chief, on assumption of office obtains details of the dates of birth (and thus retirement dates) of senior officers and thereafter, identify prospective officers from his regiment or ilk. Before his tenure ends, he ‘manages’ the system to ensure that the selected protégé are suitably placed and all likely challenges to their advancement are nipped in the bud. In other words, he firmly plants them in the line of succession. Earlier such manipulation was done in a discrete manner. Over a period of time, the practice has become so well entrenched that Chiefs have no qualms in openly flaunting their preferences. The worst, the environment has got so used to this partisanship that it has come it accept it as a normal practice.

Sadly for the country, most Chiefs remain myopic in their regimental allegiance and fail to grow up. Instead of selecting best talent for higher commands, their blinkered approach fails to see beyond Infantry, Armoured Corps and Artillery loyalties. Chiefs who have benefited from such preferred dispensation feel morally obliged to carry on in the same vein and extend similar benefaction to their regimental subordinates. Most representations and court cases to seek redressal of grievances are on account of this partisanship.

There is no selection beyond the rank of Lt Gen, all Lt Gens are considered fit to assume the appointment of Chief.
According to many observers, the Government has abrogated its responsibility under the plea that it does not want to be seen meddling in the internal functioning of the services. It lets the services throw up its leadership even at the cost of depriving the nation of the best talent available. This is a highly specious excuse. Government’s attitude of non-interference is construed by many to mean that it is not unduly concerned about the quality of leadership of the services as it matters little in their scheme of governance. Chiefs are not part of any major decision making apparatus. Even critical proposals affecting national security are discussed by bureaucrats without any inputs sought from the services.

The current system is most unacceptable. For selection of Army Commanders (and equivalent Naval and Air Force appointments), a selection board under the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) should be constituted to recommend names as per the laid down criteria. The board should have the three service Chiefs as members. The concerned Military Secretary should be the member-secretary. Board recommendations should be put up to the Cabinet Committee on Appointments (CCA) after obtaining the concurrence of the Defence Minister. Selection of a Chief should similarly be done by a board under the CDS. The Defence Secretary could be a co-opted member to provide government’s inputs. Final approval should be granted by CCA, as per the prevailing orders. Till the government approves appointment of CDS, the boards should be headed by Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee.

Quality of top military brass is too serious a matter to be left to the whims of service Chiefs. Date of birth cannot be the sole deciding factor. It is time the Government puts in place a well evolved selection system to ensure that merit becomes the main criteria for promotion to higher ranks. The Indian armed forces deserve the best leadership.

Maj Gen Mrinal Suman is India’s foremost expert in defence procurement procedures and offsets. He heads Defence Technical Assessment and Advisory Services Group of CII.
Selecting Military's Top Brass

Air Chief Marshal PV Naik takes over as Chairman, COSC

The Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal P.V. Naik receiving the baton as he took over as the Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC) from outgoing Chief of Army Staff, General Deepak Kapoor at a brief ceremony, in New Delhi on March 30, 2010. Photo no.CNR- 31003

PIB: Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal PV Naik took over as the Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC) today. He received the baton of Chairman, COSC from outgoing Chief of Army Staff, General Deepak Kapoor at a brief ceremony in the South Block. Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral Nirmal Verma was also present.

Speaking on the occasion, Air Marshal Naik said the Indian Armed Forces are in the process of moulding existing and emerging concepts together, to develop capabilities and solutions that will directly benefit the Armed Forces and the joint warfighter of tomorrow. In his farewell address, General Deepak Kapoor said a number of important ongoing issues like Network for Spectrum, Ballistic Missile Defence and Space Based Systems need to be addressed jointly.

Commissioned into the IAF in June 1969 as a fighter pilot, Air Marshal Naik has flown a variety of combat aircraft and is a Qualified Flying Instructor and a Fighter Combat Leader. A graduate of the Defence Services Staff College and an alumnus of the National Defence College, Air Marshal Naik is a recipient of the Param Vishisht Seva Medal and Vishisht Seva Medal. PK
Air Chief Marshal PV Naik takes over as Chairman, COSC