OROP :: NEWS LETTER FROM VICE ADMIRAL HARINDER SINGH , PRESIDENT NAVY FOUNDATION DELHI CHARTER DATED 16 SEP 2015 IS APPENDED BELOW:

SOURCE : FACE BOOK

NEWS LETTER FROM VICE ADMIRAL HARINDER SINGH , PRESIDENT NAVY FOUNDATION DELHI CHARTER[ NFDC ] DATED 16 SEP 2015 IS APPENDED BELOW:

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THE LETTER HAS BEEN RECD BY MANY WHO HAVE FIRED THEIR SALVO AT ME CDR SHARAN AHUJA ...SECY NFDC UNDER ADMIRAL HARINDER SINGH ....FOR INFO OF ALL VETERANS I AM THE WEB MASTER AND TREASURER FROM 2005 WITH REAR ADMIRAL RAVI VOHRA FOR 2 YEARS ..THEN VICE ADMIRAL HARINDER SINGH FOR 6 YEARS THEN REAR ADMIRAL SK DAS AND NOW THE SECY WITH ADMIRAL HARINDER FROM 2014 TILL DATE AS SECY...

ALL VETERANS KINDLY NOTE THE LETTER BELOW IS PURELY BELONGS TO ADMIRAL HARINDER AS AN INDIVIDUAL AND I AS WEB MASTER ONLY THE MESSENGER SENDER...THESE ARE HIS VIEWS ON OROP.....

SOME NAVAL OFFICERS HAVE WRITTEN THEIR ANGRY COMMENTS AS BELOW FROM CDR RANBIR SONI..MANY ARE STRONGLY WORDED...AND NOT PENNING...DEBATE IS OPEN FOR DISCUSSION IN THE OPEN AND NOT CLOSED DOORS....EITHER WAY I AM THE WINNER...WITH IESM SATBIR / VK GANDHI AND THE JOINT SECY OF IESM...SINCE BIRTH 2008 .RGDS..SHARAN
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SECONDS OUT OF THE RANGE ...IN THE RED CORNER....XXXXX AND THE BLUE CORNER.....YYYYYY....REFEREE...MAJ DEVINE JONES AND FALL BACK REFEREE...MAJ DARSHAN SINGH AND CHEEMA....THERE ARE BOUND TO BE MANY KNOCK OUTS AS ADM HARINDER IS AN RIMCOLLIAN AND I AM FROM SJA ST JOSEPH'S ACADEMY DEHRA DUN ...THE SCHOOL OF .GEN VP MALIK AND ADMIRAL'S SUSHIL KUMAR AND SHEKHAWAT AND VISHNU BHAGWAT AND AIR CHIEF SURI'S SCHOOL...
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NOIDA HOSPITAL MAX FORTIS THANKS FOR KEEPING THE AMBULANCES READY
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Dear Members,

1. E Newsletter of 16 Sep 15 is attached please.

2. There is s special Section B1 covering various aspects of OROP along with attachments and is given below after the preliminary part.

The remaining subjects are covered as follows
A. NFDC Notices and Issues.
B, Pension, ECHS and other news for Veterans
C. Indian Navy and Maritime Issues
D. Health for Veterans
E. Defence and Security Issues
F. Issues of Special Interest
G On the Lighter Side

Regards

President, NFDC
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B 1 - HALF

an OROP
We are giving below a brief on the OROP. Many may not agree with it but consider it as an input from well wishers and another point of view to be considered. There is no doubt that the GOI has reneged on its promise but the more discerning had expected the same to happen for a variety of reasons.
Here is the highlights of Parrikar's announcement on the OROP:

1. OROP will be implemented from July 1, 2014 and the base year would be 2013.
2. The estimated cost to implement OROP would be between Rs 8,000 crore to Rs 10,000.
3. Pension of ex-servicemen will be revised every five years.
4. Re-fixed pension will be the average of minimum and maximum pension in 2013.
5. OROP arrears to be paid in 4 half-yearly installments.
6. Those drawing pensions above the average will be protected.
7. A one-member judicial committee will be constituted. It will give reports on equalization period in 6 months.
8. Personnel who retire voluntarily will not be covered under OROP scheme (This probably concerns VRS only).

OROP announcement is finally out and is quite unappetizing. The five-yearly pension revision is the final nail in the OROP coffin and the adverse effects of it will come home to roost after the 7thPC recommendations are announced and implemented. The hype that had been built up - may be, we did it ourselves a la ‘Goebbels’- proved to be a house built on sand. What has finally come out is a mere pension enhancement and not OROP may be a half OROP. We need to reflect and see where we went wrong and what the best way forward is.

Whether the veterans recognise it and admit it or not, the relay hunger strike and the Jantar Mantar agitation did nothing to get us the OROP we wanted. We could have got this half OROP or better by sitting across the table and negotiating in good faith at least a year ago. We have been let down by the leaders of negotiating ESMs who were naive enough to be outwitted in what the GOI was offering and how it would be implemented. The negatives that we are discovering now should have been recognised earlier and put before the political leadership. Further, our leaders did not show flexibility, prudence and maturity to ‘negotiate’ but insisted on and continue on a dogmatic reiteration of their demand when it was more than obvious that OROP as per our demands was a no no as far as GOI was concerned. They relied on their ‘agitational power’ that our countrymen were beginning to get disturbed by, and we had to see the editorials against us, in at least two of the most prominent newspapers that were actually not circulated by the ESMs. Just as a matter of record nfdc(the only ESM that did not join) was not with IESM or a part of JFESM .

Veterans appear to be completely blinded by mistrust and rather than rationalising, they assume that every announcement is a sinister civilian conspiracy against them, the veterans need to appreciate the fiscal and other constraints of the government and politicians. Similarly, when we are not getting media attention, the assumption is that GOI is working overtime against us – it could also be due to the fact that the media and the public believe that OROP, in whatever form, has been given and IESM is only crying foul as it failed in its objectives. We need to read beyond the hundreds of emails being churned out by our brethren that seemed to give our cause invincibility and for it, all of us are responsible.

Also, recall that we have been in an agitational mode since 2006-7 when the 6thPC report came and at this rate will probably continue for another indeterminate number of years as the 7thPC is around the corner and OROP overhang will also remain. On reflecting back, it will be an honest conclusion that we got many changes and improvements in 6PC recommendations, the benefit of which went first to the civil services in equal measure without their having the need to agitate and we getting a bad name. It is only a matter of time that the railways and the civil services will also get pension enhancements that will be no less than ours, one way or another (7th PC !!). We need to exercise patience and sound judgment. We must have our feet on the ground whilst we have our heads in the clouds.

We need to reflect on the way we have handled the issue of OROP, what more we can achieve continuing with our agitation in current form and decide the best way ahead. The rational assumption must be that OROP is not possible as per our definition and that the nation cannot afford it for a variety of financial and other reasons including its applicability to others, that we refuse to agree with. The self delusion and euphoria by IESM on the announcement of OROP was based on poor `negotiation skills and unreasonable assumptions. Some of the comments in their emails by IESM and UFESM (which included all ESMs of all nomenclatures barring nfdc) are reproduced below to show how far they were removed from facts of life and are now eating their own words.

The home truth that taking to the street in agitation mode gets results than all other democratic methods is a bitter lesson unlikely to be forgotten by both serving and retired military men, though they are so alien to good order and discipline ingrained in their lives. Thus the veterans’ agitation, rather than the grant of OROP, is a watershed event that will continue to haunt civil-military relations in the country.

Fifth September 2015 is a very auspicious day when our fight for OROP, 30 year old demand, has at-last been approved by the NDA Govt. Initially in 2008 ESM started the fight for OROP with the Govt and planned many rallies to communicate to Government that Armed Forces Personnel and Ex-servicemen are being given raw treatment in Independent India. IESM organised many rallies in last six years to convince all political parties that ESM need to be given OROP and need solution for some of their difficulties like medical attention, war memorial and ex- servicemen commission. UFESM was formed in June 2015, to unitedly put up fight for OROP. It is the effort of UFESM that OROP dream has has come true.

UFESM Thanks Prime Minister; UFESM sincerely thanks Prime Minister Sh Narendra Modi ji for taking personal interest in OROP and ensuring approval of OROP on 5 Sept 15...... UFESM is thankful to Prime Minister of India Sh Narendra Modi ji for clarifying this in the speech on 6 Sep 15 at Faridabad. He assured ESM that someone is misleading the ESM by inserting the clause of VRS in the declaration of OROP. ......Respected Prime Minister sir ESM all over India reciprocate this feeling and affirm their respect for PM.

Col Inderjit Singh, Lt Gen Balbir singh and Maj Gen Satbir singh has provided sterling leadership to lead the campaign to make dream of OROP a reality. All ESM salute their dedication and hard work

Needless to add that there were many Jai Chands around and many of the ESMs including IESM and others negotiated behind the back of others and without carrying other ESMs with them. It is not surprising that there is a vertical split in ESMs besides the split with PBORs. We are now clutching at the last straws asking for flying black flags on houses, continuing with Dharna, seeking help of former Chiefs or CinCs, interventions by ACM NC Suri, the matter is well past them and even the serving Chiefs have given up on us – we can’t face this reality, but that’s where matters stand.

We have had delusions of power and strength that didn’t stand the test of time and is unlikely to do so in the future. No political party has any use for us as we mostly don’t exercise the ballot and those who do are not a homogeneous group. Congress before the last elections didn’t give us the time of day on OROP. BJP once in power also has no use for us and we could have rationally, hardly expected better. Let’s be clear if a Veteran stood for election without any party’s backing he shall lose his deposit as some learnt during the last elections. We could make zero difference to the outcome of Bihar elections and if any ESM Org believes that it will make a difference, then they should step out and test out their mettle.
In the coming days, some of the ambiguities over OROP will be ironed out. Arrears will be paid in four equal half-yearly installments to around 24 lakh veterans. Six lakh widows will receive their arrears in one lump sum. The total annual budget for OROP is estimated at between Rs 8,000 and Rs 10,000 crore. Arrears will add up another Rs 12,000 crore. Thus the outgo in this financial year (assuming disbursement of two half-yearly installments of Rs 3,000 crore each and the widows' full pension) would be around Rs 18,000 crore. The overall annual pension budget is currently Rs 54,000 crore. The recurring extra annual outflow of Rs 10,000 crore (excluding arrears) thus represents an increase of 18 per cent. This will increase substantially once the 7thPC recommendations are out.

Agitations and relay hunger strikes, returning of the medals, threats to burn our medals, absence from 1965 War commemorations, absence from 15 Aug ceremonies, stopping traffic on the roads, wearing black bands hardly brought glory to the Veterans who once were proudly part of the uniformed services. Futility of writing to the Supreme Commander of the India’s armed forces , return of medals, submitting papers signed in blood, he didn’t even care to meet us. NFDC did a careful study of what we should or should not do as an organisation and a copy of the email of Jun 2008 and entitled 'agitations' is attached as a reminder. In fact it holds good even today. No doubt, Veterans and their contributions and sacrifice are idolized and respected by a grateful nation. What keeps our armed forces a professional and patriotic institution are the men and women that serve in them - their contributions, idealism and beliefs. Let’s not let our countrymen’s beliefs and trust in us be whittled and wasted away, for ever.

So where do we go from here? There will necessarily be further discussions with GOI but nothing substantial should be expected from them. We need to move away from public view and explore other robust options. Office bearers of IESM and UFESM , in the meantime, must give a full account of the funds collected and their use as various estimates quote figures in Crores and there are rumours of their misuse.

Older nfdc members will / may recall that we had, in 2009 retained Mr Nirdesh Gupta, an extremely well known ‘service condition lawyer’ who also handled the Maj Gen Vains case and paid him a retainer that we subsequently lost. We had also discussed the desirability of taking the issue to court and Mr HK Shourie’s NGO ‘Common Cause’ had agreed to steer our case without any monetary charges. (This NGO is currently fighting many PILs in SC and including against the previous CJ of SC, previous Director CBI and is represented by Mr Prashat Bhushan)These options were explored with and were to be exercised jointly, but unfortunately IESM was in agitational mood and had shied away, leaving the option dormant. May be we should restart this process and which will necessarily be without any thunder and lightning and throwing some of us before the media, but more rewarding.

There is no doubt, that the concept of OROP has already been approved by the judiciary and covers everyone in government service, whether in uniform or not. If we want to be treated differently and get more pension than civilians we must have our own pay commissions. The serving Chiefs did the uniformed community and us a gross disservice by rejecting the offer of a separate PC, something we had fought for, for four decades. Veterans have shied away from giving the serving Chiefs a piece of their mind for such a reckless decision. They have let us down multiple times.

We in nfdc have written on the Maj Gen Vains case very many times and are not repeating it here for brevity and are attaching a copy of the SC judgment. Do take the trouble of reading it as it in principle approves OROP and the original 50 odd applicants will draw it soon. Also, please understand that the initial case, the DS Nakra case, is fully relevant to civilians and in fact Mr Nakra was a retd FADS and the Navy was represented by Rear Admiral Satyendra Singh. Legally, OROP is as applicable to the Civilians, Para Mil and the police as it is to US, whether we like it or not.

There has been a similar case of Rajasthan Civilians and there is a landmark judgement delivered recently by the Supreme Court of India on 01 07 2015, Civil Appeal no. 1123 of 2015. A brief and a copy of the same is attached for your perusal, highlights are given below:

1. The bench has authoritatively ruled that Pension is a right and the payment of it does not depend upon the discretion of the Government. Pension is governed by rules and a Government Servant coming within those rules is entitled to claim pension.

2.The judgement has recognised that the revision of pension and revision of pay scales are inseparable.

3.The bench has reiterated that on revision the Basic pension cannot be less than 50% of the Basic Pension in the minimum of the Pay Band in the revised scale corresponding to the pre-revised scale.

4.The government cannot take a plea of financial burden to deny legitimate dues of the pensioners.

5.The Government should curtail unwarranted litigation and not to encourage any litigation for the sake of litigation.

6. When pension is upheld to be a right and not a bounty. as a corollary to the averment that revision of pension and revision of pay scales are inseparable, upgradation of pension is also a right and not a bounty

The judgment draws on the SC decision on DS Nakara case as does the Maj Gen Vains case.

We therefore recommend suspension of all forms of agitations and seeking redressal through the Courts.

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Yes We Need Course Correction

Whither Bound ?? Do We need a Course correction ( Repeat From nfdc newsletter of 14 Apr 15)

We, the veterans take pride in the fact that we belong to the noblest profession in the world

– the profession of arms that ensures security of our country. ‘Once a soldier always a soldier’ is an old adage. Shedding of uniform does not severe our umbilical links with the military. We continue to act as ambassadors of the people in uniform.

When in service, we are admired for our dedication to the cause of national security. Similarly, after retirement we should earn respect of the countrymen by contributing to the betterment of the society. People should look up to the veterans as the conscience-keeper of the values that our nation cherishes.

Most social scientists consider the military to be a major modernizing force. Soldiers possess necessary education, experience and maturity to be an agent of social change. They do not get carried away by rhetoric; they are doers and achievers.

Unfortunately, veterans in India have come to be associated with OROP, ECHS and canteen facilities. It is time we step out of our self-interest issues and prove ourselves to be worthy of the nation’s admiration that we yearn for.

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Nitin Pai: Why military must use economic reasoning

The demand for OROP has been projected as an unambiguous issue but a good policy argument must have a sound economic element

This week, four retired service chiefs wrote a letter to the President of India, invoking his capacities as Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces and First Citizen to intervene in the ongoing agitation for One Rank One Pension (OROP) by military veterans. The wording in the letter is alarming: they argue that the "denial of OROP is merely the last straw that has exhausted the [veterans'] patience", and though the agitation has "thus far, remained in accordance with the armed forces tradition - peaceful, disciplined and dignified," they warn that "there is every possibility of the situation getting out of hand."
The four former chiefs call on the President to invite the veterans' representatives to discuss the issue before requesting them to discontinue the agitation. More than military modernisation, structural reform or defence strategy, the primary defence issue on the government's table has become one of pay and pensions. Worse, the OROP agitation has brought about an unprecedented politicisation of the armed forces (for the veterans often express what service personnel cannot) the contemporary roots of which can be traced back to the wage bargaining during the Sixth Pay Commission in the United Progressive Alliance era. A situation has thus come to pass where some veterans have threatened to intervene in the upcoming Bihar state Assembly election campaign. They certainly have the right to do so, but it is not a wise thing to do.

It is must be noted that while retired generals and admirals are now asking the President to intervene, few of their counterparts have publicly advised the agitating veterans to resist getting onto the slippery slope of politicisation. Not only is the political route dangerous from a civil-military relations standpoint, it is also counterproductive to the larger cause of the armed forces.

For once veterans descend into the highly contested political space, they will quickly lose the sheen of being above the fray, and risk losing the high public esteem they enjoy. The fortunes of the leaders of the 2010-11 anti-corruption movement should alert them to how swift this process can be: in less than four years, the leaders of the anti-corruption movement went from being seen as heroes to being the usual, contemptible politicians. It is not in the national interest for this to happen to military personnel, and retired generals, admirals and air marshals must urge their colleagues to desist from this path.

I do not intend to revisit the pros and cons of OROP today. Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself has told the veterans that the ball is in his court. There is a former army chief and a retired colonel in his ministry. So the ball is in as good a place as it can be. While we await Mr Modi's decision, what I wish to highlight is the weaknesses in how the armed forces tend to frame their arguments and why they must do it better.

OROP has been projected as an unambiguous issue and its demand based on the logic of comparison of service conditions, retirement age and post-retirement livelihoods of civilian and military personnel. This has been the primary argument of the agitators. Some analysts call it an "emotive issue" for the veterans. As the retired service chiefs' letter and statements by some veterans suggest, a political threat has also been conveyed to the government, after decades of fruitlessly pleading their case.

This is an entirely political argument. Public policy, however, is made on the basis of economic reasoning. Yes, even in India. Of course, as we have seen in the past decade, irresponsible political leaders abandon this, especially when times are good and the treasury is full. However, when there is ambiguity on the macroeconomic front and fiscal space is tight, governments tend to rely more on working out the economics. A good public policy argument must therefore have a sound economic element to it, to support the case if not to make it entirely.

This is where the armed forces fall short. Their response to fiscal counter-arguments - that we might suffer unsustainable fiscal deficits on account of OROP - has been to either brush it off as a triviality or respond with more emotional arguments. Veterans and their supporters have not offered counter-analyses of the fiscal consequences of OROP. It is no good to admit that military people do not understand issues of public finance: they can get help from those who do.

Let me use this instance to make a general point: the armed forces cannot be oblivious to economic considerations in contemporary India, with a more educated citizenry fighting over how public resources must be used. In response to one of my earlier columns - where I argued that moving military facilities outside city centres is a win-win solution - some veterans retorted that the columnist does not understand military matters. Fair enough, if one is discussing matters of military strategy, but rather beside the point if the issue is parade grounds in central business districts.

Indian democracy needs more thoughtful, credible and influential military perspectives to be voiced and heard. Beyond emotion and sentiment, the cold hard logic of defence economics is called for.

The writer is co-founder and director of the Takshashila Institution, an independent think tank

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  Cdr Sharan Ahuja Sja From: "ranbir soni" <ranbirsoni@gmail.com>
  Date: 19 Sep 2015 15:10
  Subject: Re: E Newsletter of 16 Sep 15...,,
  
  I am shocked to read the writeup on OROP. All these years we did nothing and lumped every humiliation thrown at us. Remember Rank Pay fiasco and 28 long years it took to resolve ? And, remember Major Dhanapalan who did it for us in the absence of any organisational backup and the total apathy of our service chiefs? Sadly, now that we have a forum called UFESM spearheading a historic demand, we are hell bent on pulling it down. Let us stop surmonising and lecturing on alternative therapies. Asking for utilisation of funds by those of us who did nothing to cure the malaise is shameful, to say the least. 
  The momentum gained by this protest is unstoppable and the outcome is inevitable. It has already yielded tangible outcomes after a sustained dilly dallying by the govt. 
  Let the Navy Foundation (Delhi Charter) not be part of the vilification campaign against this OROP protest. It should rather support it whole heartedly. 
  Having been closely associated with the implementation of the 5th CPC, I know what I said on this subject.
  
  Thanks 
  Cdr RM Soni (V)
  9868417099

  Like · 6 · 2 hrs
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  Suresh Babu How dare such comments can be made that the announcement by govt on 05 Sept has nothing do with the ongoing strike. Govt made such announcement in a hurry mainly due to FUD and realising the fact that anything happens to veterans on fast will result in humiliating defeat in the Bihar election. I find Airforce Association of India is very actively pursuing for the causes of Veterans, which is being disseminated through their Facebook page and Twitter handle whereas nothing of that sort from Navy Foundation.

  Like · 4 · 1 hr
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  Johnson Thomas What fiscal tightness is the Admiral talking about? Govt is spending 21000 crores for non functional financial upgradation for all civilians in. 58 organised services which is not only enhanced pay but also pensionary benefits. The adumiral should take note that defence pension as a % of GDP in 1973 was about 0.74% which got reduced to just 0.38% in 2015. And another fact is bulk of the defence pension goes to defence civilians ie 22% of defence pensioners who are civilians get 55% of defence pension.The current GDP is 2066 billion US dollars and to maintain 1973 levels the defence pension should have been about Rs 80000 crores. Fauji can also do number crunching and mathematics and the Admiral is requested to do his maths in this so called tight fiscal space that he is alluding to

  Like · 1 · 1 hr
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  Ranjit Attri Loot of lacs of crores , BILLION DOLED OUT IN PHILANTHROPY . LACS OF CRORES WRITTEN OFF AS BAD DEBTS ,RECOVERY , BAD LOANS GIVEN FOR CONSIDERATION OF NEVER TO RETURN all pervading , yet we talk of economic prudence and fiscal discipline . 8 thousand cr. Are pea nuts. Let us strike a deal . Withdraw NFU. APEX SCALE , CAREER UPGRADATION AND MANY MORE SUCH CLANDESTINE NEFARIOUS APROBATION TO THOSE WHO POCKET THESE GOODIES FOR THEMSELVES AND THEIR COTERIES, veteran may then consider forgetting OROP., LET US SEE IT HAPPENING FIRST. ADMIRAL MAY BE BENEFICIARY HIMSELF HENCE PERFORCE SPEAK THIS LANGUAGE . UNEQUAL DISTRIBUTION OF LOOT WOULD ALWAYS CREATE DISSENSION . THIS PROPOSAL SHOULD BE HAPPILY ACCEPTABLE . ? WHYNOT IMPLEMENT IT WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT. ?

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  DR-Sanjiv Pathak

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  Now Congress, on its last leg, is Sonia/Rahul Combo.
  It's only a matter of time before the ship sinks.
  Rats are on the verge of deserting the over a century old Steamer which has exhausted its propulsion power!!!
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