OROP Announced But Veterans' Struggle Still On

It's a battle half won. On 5th Sept 2015, 43 years after it was first demanded, Narendra Modi led NDA government announced the implementation of One Rank One Pension (OROP). It is a new system of determining pension of Armed Forces in which two military persons who retired after equal service in the same rank, get an equal pension, irrespective of time span separating their retirement day.

But, what could have been an end of 83 days battle for the veterans in Jantar Mantar, seems to be a start of a fresh struggle. Even though the ex-servicemen have welcomed and  thanked the government for principally accepting and implementing OROP. They have openly rejected most points of the proposal.

According to the proposal announced by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, the commencement of OROP will be from 1st July 2014 with 2013 as the base year. The veterans want it to be April 2014 as announced by previous UPA government. But, the government has taken July as the month of commencement because it took the oath in May.
Another announcement with which veterans are unhappy is that the gap between the rate of current pensioners and past pensioners all be equalized in every 5 years. What veterans demanded was revision should be done in every two years. OROP loses it relevance and then it will be considered as One Rank Five Pensions. Understanding the reason behind government step, Rajya Sabha MP Rajeev Chandrashekhar told Indian Express, "it is financially prudent to first observe pension cost movement for few years before commitment to normalize more is implemented frequently." 

But, the difference that has grabbed the major attention was a new bone of contention of Premature retirement. Manohar Parrikar in his press conference mentioned that personnel who have taken premature retirement are not entitled to OROP. The exclusion of PMR astonished veterans as it was never a part of the discussion between government and ex-servicemen. Though Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a rally in Faridabad, said "those injured, those who had to compulsorily leave, they will get OROP. But there is a bit of confusion over the implementation of OROP for those who took early retirement for benefits. Veterans have showed their disagreement and have called it 'last-minute mischief' by the government. According to the veterans, 46% of ex-servicemen PMR. If this clause excluded, the OROP budget will be slashed by 50% - about Rs 4000 crore of the estimated Rs 8000-10000 crore.This issue of PMR is, of course, a major reason for veterans to continue the relay hunger strike. Though, the infinite hunger strike of eight ex-servicemen has been called off.

The struggle is on, even though the implementation is a big win for the veterans. What other governments couldn't do for 43 years, Modi-led NDA government did in 15 months. But it  can gain total success and appreciation only when these issues will be resolved soon.

Paying Lip Service

   Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has ruled out recruiting women for combat operations in the armed forces fearing about their safety. "Think what can happen if a woman is taken as a prisoner in Combat operation." he said while implying the atrocities they might suffer by the enemies.

His statement came just few months after India showcased 'Nari Shakti' while celebrating its 66th Republic Day with Wing Commander Pooja Thakur, the first lady officer to lead guard of honour for Chief Guest and U.S. President Barack Obama at Rashtrapati Bhavan and with women contingent from all 3 armed forces march down the Rajpath during the parade. But then one why not use the women power during war or any other combat situation? 

"By the end of the day, we were just a show dolls for the U.S President." said a serving Lady officer who participated in the Parade. 

Protecting women from Enemy's atrocities is just a tip of the iceberg. Manohar Parrikar was just uttering the old and constant stand of armed forces.  

According to the a news report, Women have been serving the armed forces from last 88 years but unfortunately make up only 5% of military officers. Most of the women are in the medical field as compared of the other branches. Other than medical and education branch, women serving in the non-technical branch are recruited under short service commission. The situation, with Parrikar statement, won't change in near future also.

An affidavit filed by a JCO on  behalf of the Army Headquarters in 2012 before the Supreme Court, stated that many army's junior commissioned officers and other ranks, who hails from rural india, are not yet ready to accept women as their leaders. 

'The interface between the leaders and the led must be without any reserve or preconceived notions especially in battle conditions where jawans repose full faith in decision." stated the affidavit. 

But, the female counterparts denies the awkwardness between Jawans and the lady officers and states that reality is something else. "In reality, it's the officers who are not able to deal with the female counterparts. To tell you... most of the misbehaviour cases have male officers involved rather than the jawans." said the serving officer. 

The affidavit went a step further and stressed that the experience with Short Service Commission (SSC) woman officers has not been encouraging. It said that the response of woman officers when detailed on various courses which are crucial for career progression 'is far from encouraging.

'In most cases, woman officers have declined to go on courses of instructions due to various reasons ranging from family commitment to personal problems,' it added.  

'There is an ever growing demand for spouse/choice postings which is adversely impacting the management of officers to the detriment of male officers,' the affidavit pointed out.

The mentality has not change yet. How will it if we don't take steps to bring the difference? No one expect the Ministry to immediately send woman officers in sensitive area but at least give them opportunity to prove their strength and worth to fight for our country. The country can only celebrate Nari shakti when we remove all the barriers to help them rise. 

ALL THE INFORMATION IN THIS ARTICLE ARE GATHER FROM MANY NEWSPAPERS.